title: Generalized Joint Laxity and Ligament Injuries in High School-Aged Female Volleyball Players in Japan.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Generalized joint laxity has been linked to ligamentous injuries such as anterior cruciate ligament tear and ankle sprain.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to investigate generalized joint laxity and incidence of ligament injuries in high school-aged female volleyball players. It was hypothesized that volleyball players with a past history of sprains would have increased generalized joint laxity compared with those without any history and that athletes with multiple sprains would demonstrate with a higher generalized joint laxity score than those who had only 1 sprain.
  
  
  METHODS
  Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-seven subjects were tested for generalized joint laxity using the Beighton and Horan Joint Mobility Index (BHJMI). They were categorized into 2 groups based on the presence of past ligament injury: injury group (IG) and noninjury group (NG). The IG group was further divided into 2 groups based on whether they had a single ligamentous injury (IGS) or multiple injuries (IGM) in the past to study whether there was any difference in scores between the subgroups. The collected data were analyzed statistically with 1-way analysis of variance.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Subjects in the IG group scored significantly higher on the BHJMI than those in the NG group. The mean score for the IG group was 2.40 ± 1.42, as opposed to 1.24 ± 1.09 for the NG group (P= .006). Eleven subjects in the IG group had suffered multiple injuries or recurrent injuries (IGM) and scored significantly higher than the remaining 19 individuals in the IG group, who had only sustained a single injury (IGS). The mean BHJMI scores were 3.18 ± 1.47 and 1.95 ± 1.22 for IGM and IGS, respectively (P= .02).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Female athletes with a high generalized joint laxity score may be more prone to ligament injury and potentially to recurrent ligament injuries.
authors.affiliation: Physiotherapy Associates, Scottsdale, Arizona, USA.
authors.forename: Ted
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sueyoshi
authors.affiliation: Emoto Knee and Sport Clinic, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Gen
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Emoto
authors.affiliation: Emoto Knee and Sport Clinic, Fukuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomoki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yuasa
keywords: Beighton and Horan Joint Mobility Index; female athletes; generalized joint laxity; ligament injury