Efficacy of ACL injury risk screening methods in identifying high-risk landing patterns during a sport-specific task.
Screening methods sensitive to movement strategies that increase anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) loads are likely to be effective in identifying athletes at-risk of ACL injury. Current ACL injury risk screening methods are yet to be evaluated for their ability to identify athletes' who exhibit high-risk lower limb mechanics during sport-specific maneuvers associated with ACL injury occurrences. The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of two ACL injury risk screening methods in identifying high-risk lower limb mechanics during a sport-specific landing task. Thirty-two female athletes were screened using the Landing Error Scoring System (LESS) and Tuck Jump Assessment. Participants' also completed a sport-specific landing task, during which three-dimensional kinematic and kinetic data were collected. One-dimensional statistical parametric mapping was used to examine the relationships between screening method scores, and the three-dimensional hip and knee joint rotation and moment data from the sport-specific landing. Higher LESS scores were associated with reduced knee flexion from 30 to 57 ms after initial contact (P = 0.003) during the sport-specific landing; however, no additional relationships were found. These findings suggest the LESS and Tuck Jump Assessment may have minimal applicability in identifying athletes' who exhibit high-risk landing postures in the sport-specific task examined.
School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, Deakin University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
A S
AS
Fox
School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, Deakin University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
J
J
Bonacci
Human Innovation, Fitbit, San Francisco, California, USA.
S G
SG
McLean
School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences, Deakin University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
N
N
Saunders
D000328:Adult; D016118:Anterior Cruciate Ligament / Q000502:physiology*; D000070598:Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control*; D056352:Athletes; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000502:physiology*; D010807:Physical Endurance / Q000502:physiology*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012399:Rotation
Biomechanics; human movement; netball