Dynamic Sagittal Plane Trunk Control During Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury

Volleyball players often land on a single leg following a spike shot due to a shift in the center of gravity and loss of balance. Landing on a single leg following a spike may increase the probability of non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries. The purpose of this study was to compare and analyze the kinematics and kinetics differences during the landing phase of volleyball players using a single leg (SL) and double-leg landing (DL) following a spike shot. The data for vertical ground reaction forces (VGRF) and sagittal plane were collected. SPM analysis revealed that SL depicted a smaller knee flexion angle (about 13.8°) and hip flexion angle (about 10.8°) during the whole landing phase, a greater knee and hip power during the 16.83–20.45% (p = 0.006) and 13.01–16.26% (p = 0.008) landing phase, a greater ankle plantarflexion angle and moment during the 0–41.07% (p < 0.001) and 2.76–79.45% (p < 0.001) landing phase, a greater VGRF during the 5.87–8.25% (p = 0.029), 19.75–24.14% (p = 0.003) landing phase when compared to DL. Most of these differences fall within the time range of ACL injury (30–50 milliseconds after landing). To reduce non-contact ACL injuries, a landing strategy of consciously increasing the hip and knee flexion, and plantarflexion of the ankle should be considered by volleyball players.

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The Incidence of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries among Competitive Alpine Skiers

The American Journal of Sports Medicine ◽

10.1177/0363546507301083 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 35 (7) ◽

pp. 1070-1074 ◽

Cited By ~ 94

Author(s):

Nicolas Pujol ◽

Marie Philippe Rousseaux Blanchi ◽

Pierre Chambat

Keyword(s):

Anterior Cruciate Ligament ◽

Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury ◽

Cruciate Ligament ◽

Injury Rate ◽

Ligament Injury ◽

Ligament Injuries ◽

Injury Rates ◽

Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries ◽

Alpine Skiers ◽

Anterior Cruciate

Background Little is known about the evolution of anterior cruciate ligament injury rates among elite alpine skiers. Purpose To evaluate epidemiologic aspects of anterior cruciate ligament injuries among competitive alpine skiers during the last 25 years. Study Design Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods Data were collected from elite French national teams (379 athletes: 188 women and 191 men) from 1980 to 2005. Results Fifty-three of the female skiers (28.2%) and 52 of the male skiers (27.2%) sustained at least 1 anterior cruciate ligament injury. The overall anterior cruciate ligament injury incidence was 8.5 per 100 skier-seasons. The primary anterior cruciate ligament injury rate was 5.7 per 100 skier-seasons. The prevalence of reinjury (same knee) was 19%. The prevalence of a bilateral injury (injury of the other knee) was 30.5%. At least 1 additional anterior cruciate ligament surgery (mean, 2.4 procedures) was required for 39% of the injured athletes. Men and women were similar with regard to primary anterior cruciate ligament injury rate (P = .21), career remaining after the injury (P = .44), and skiing specialty (P = .5). There were more anterior cruciate ligament injuries (primary, bilateral, reinjuries) among athletes ranking in the world Top 30 (P < .001). Anterior cruciate ligament-injured athletes had a career length of 7.5 years, whereas athletes with no anterior cruciate ligament injury had a career of 4.5 years (P < .001). Finally, injury rates remained constant over time. Conclusion Anterior cruciate ligament injury rates (primary injury, bilateral injury, reinjury) among national competitive alpine skiers are high and have not declined in the last 25 years. Finding a way to prevent anterior cruciate ligament injury in this population is a very important goal.

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