Interseason variability of a functional movement test, the 9+ screening battery, in professional male football players.
BACKGROUND
The Nine Plus screening battery test (9+) is a functional movement test intended to identify limitations in fundamental movement patterns predisposing athletes to injury. However, the interseason variability is unknown.


OBJECTIVE
To examine the variability of the 9+ test between 2 consecutive seasons in professional male football players.


METHODS
Asymptomatic Qatar Star League players (n=220) completed the 9+ at the beginning of the 2013 and 2014 seasons. Time-loss injuries in training and matches were obtained from the Aspetar Injury and Illness Surveillance Program. No intervention was initiated between test occasions.


RESULTS
A significant increase in the mean total score of 1.6 points (95% CI 1.0 to 2.2, p<0.001) was found from season 1 (22.2±4.1 (SD)) to season 2 (23.8±3.3). The variability was large, as shown by an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.24 (95% CI 0.11 to 0.36) and a minimal detectable change (MDC) of 8.7 points. Of the 220 players, 136 (61.8%) suffered a time-loss injury between the 2 tests. There was an improvement in mean total scores in the injured (+2.0±0.4 (SE), p<0.001) group but not in the uninjured group (+0.9±0.5, p=0.089). The variability from season 1 to season 2 was large both in the injured (ICC 0.25, 0.09 to 0.40, MDC 8.3) and uninjured (ICC 0.24, 0.02 to 0.43, MDC 9.1) groups.


CONCLUSIONS
The 9+ demonstrated substantial intraindividual variability in the total score between 2 consecutive seasons, irrespective of injury. A change above 8 points is necessary to represent a real change in the 9+ test between seasons.
Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, Doha, Qatar.|Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Oslo, Norway.
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Bakken
Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, Doha, Qatar.
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Targett
Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, Doha, Qatar.|Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Oslo, Norway.
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Bere
Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, Doha, Qatar.
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Eirale
Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, Doha, Qatar.
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Farooq
Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, Doha, Qatar.|The Sports Physician Group, Department of Sports Medicine OLVG, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.|Academic Center of Evidence Based Sports Medicine, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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Tol
Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, Doha, Qatar.
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Whiteley
Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences and Physiotherapy, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
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Witvrouw
Center for Mobility and Hip Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
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Khan
Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, Doha, Qatar.|Oslo Sports Trauma Research Center, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Oslo, Norway.
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Bahr
D000328:Adult; D056352:Athletes; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011780:Qatar; D012621:Seasons; D012916:Soccer / Q000293:injuries*; D055815:Young Adult
Athlete; Functional movement screen; Injury prevention; Measurement