Ankle range of motion and dynamic balance in recreational Sepak Takraw players with and without ankle injury - a comparative study

Background and Study Aim. Sepak Takraw (ST) is considered Malaysia's national sport, and the nature of this sport requires players to be sufficiently acrobatic. Therefore, players were expected to jump and regain their balance, challenging their dynamic balance (DB). Nonetheless, range of motion (ROM) is closely related to balance. Hence, this study aimed to compare recreational ST players' ankle ROM and DB differences with and without ankle injuries. Material and Methods. The cross-sectional study in which 30 participants were assigned purposively according to players with an ankle injury (n=15) and without ankle injury (n=15) based on the position statement of the International Ankle Consortium (IAC). One time ankle Range of Motion and Dynamic balance was measured using a universal goniometer and Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT), respectively, for both groups. Results. Independent T-test was performed to identify the significant differences (p<0.05) of SEBT and ROM between the non-injured leg and injured leg within the injured group to the non-injured group. Ankle eversion and dorsiflexion between the injured and non-injured groups did not show any significant difference with p=0.35 & p=0.53, respectively. As for SEBT, only posteromedial and medial of the injured leg did not show a significant difference p>0.05. All other ankles ROM and the SEBT score demonstrated a statistically significant difference p<0.05. Conclusions. ROM and DB training/rehabilitation should be incorporated to all the injured group ST sports players regardless of which leg is affected to optimize ankle function and the game performance.

Injury Prevalence of the Lower Limbs in Handball Players: A Systematic Review

Lower limb injuries are frequent in handball and a serious hindrance to athletic performance. The aim of this systematic review was to synthesize the available research on the prevalence of lower limb injuries in handball players according to sex and competitive level. According to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis, 19 studies were selected after a systematic search and selection process of three digital databases: Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science. Furthermore, a study quality analysis using an ‘Extension for Sports Injury and Illness Surveillance of the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE-SIIS)’ was carried out. The sample consisted of 7110 male and female handball players registering 4483 injuries in their lower limbs. The results showed a high incidence of knee injuries (30.23%) and ankle injuries (24.80%), especially in the ligaments, such as the talofibular and the anterior cruciate ligaments. Considering sex and competitive level, knee injuries accounted for 47.02% of injuries among women, while among men, ankle injuries were most prevalent (34.22%) in international competitions. Additionally, the most common cause of injuries was trauma (85.61%). The findings highlighted that the prevalence of lower limb injuries varies greatly according to the characteristics of the sample and injury. Therefore, the study underlines the importance that sports practitioners (physical trainers, readapters, and physiotherapists) adapt training protocols to reduce injury incidence in the most affected body areas or tissues.

Constitutional Approach as a Factor of Sports Injury Prevention

A career in professional sports depends on a number of factors related both directly to the athlete’s body and to the influence of external factors. Age, sport, health, personal trainer, training conditions, etc. – all this is important to achieve the result. However, the athlete’s constitutional features are significant and fundamental for achieving the result. These are not just morphological signs, but also a tendency to the occurrence of injuries and individual psychological characteristics as well as their correspondence to the functional capabilities of the athlete’s body. It is the individual mental characteristics that determine the type of response to the result of the competition (especially negative), the motivational aspect for achieving the result and recovering from injuries. This is important, since injuries are one of the primary problems of sports (regardless of the type), and the number of injuries and traumatological pathologies reaches 44% of the total number of nosologies. Aim. To substantiate the possibility and expediency of using integrative medicine methods in the rehabilitation treatment of sports injuries of the ankle joint. Material and methods. The research object was 38 male athletes involved in game sports, 18 – 26 years old with moderate ankle injuries, sports experience – 10 – 18 years, sports qualifications from the 1st category to the master of sports (MS). The patients were randomly divided into two groups. In the main group – 20 athletes – the rehabilitation schemes included: classical acupuncture, homotoxicology, hirudotherapy, post-isometric relaxation. To comfortably accompany the recovery process, a collegial model of the relationship between a doctor and an athlete was used. The control group consisted of 18 athletes with applied standard recovery rehabilitation scheme. Results and discussion. In athletes in both groups, the clinical manifestations of the disease were stopped at the same time (within6–8 days). Functional recovery of the injured joint in the main group was observed by the 16th day, in the control group – by the 22nd day. Athletes of the main observation group started competitive activity on average after 23 days, in the control group – after 28 days. Conclusion. The use of integrative medicine methods in athletes allowed to shorten the recovery period, reduce the dosage of painkillers, sedatives, anti-inflammatory drugs, accelerate the psychological adaptation of the athlete to the changed life situation and provide relief for injured athletes to undergo rehabilitation treatment, practically preserving overall physical performance.

The efficiency of proprioceptive training in preventing injuries to team athletes: A systematic review

The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the effectiveness of proprioceptive training in the prevention of lower extremity injuries, especially the ankle and knee joint, in team athletes. PRISMA recommendations were applied for this research. PubMed, ScienceDirect, and BioMed Central were used to identify relevant studies. The methodological quality of studies was assessed using the Physiotherapy Evidence Database-PEDro scale. Only 7 research met the eligibility criteria, and their outcomes were presented. Proprioceptive training has been shown to be very effective in preventing ankle injuries, especially in recurrent ankle sprains. However, in 3 of 4 studies lacked the effects of proprioceptive training in the prevention of knee and ACL injuries. Based on the results of the analyzed research, I can conclude that proprioceptive training is a very effective training tool in the prevention of ankle sprains in the population of team athletes, but proprioceptive training is not sufficient as the only training component in preventing knee injuries.

Analysis of Sports Injury in Lower Extremities of High School Taekwondo Athletes

Sports injuries frequently occur in athletes during competitive activities and practice routines, and the causes include cumulative fatigue from repetitive training, lack of warm-up exercises, and absence of motivation during competition. We aimed to determine the frequency and characteristics of lower extremity injuries in high school Taekwondo athletes. This study evaluated lower extremity sports injuries in 473 high school Taekwondo athletes. We conducted frequency and cross analyses. The questionnaire tools were developed to identify the characteristics of lower extremity injuries in Taekwondo athletes. Results: For injury by person, thigh injuries and re-injuries were most frequent. In non-contact injury, ankle injuries and re-injuries were most numerous. In the men’s lightweight category, thighs were injured the most in injury by person and ankles suffered the most non-contact injuries. In the men’s heavyweight category, the number of knee injuries was highest in injury by person, and the number of ankle injuries was highest in non-contact injury. In the women’s lightweight category, thighs suffered a higher number of injuries by person, whereas ankles had the highest number of non-contact injuries. In the women’s heavyweight category, thighs had the highest number of injuries by persons, whereas ankles had the highest number of non-contact injuries. The causes of ankle injury in weight classes were different in the two sexes. Conclusion: In this study, we confirmed that the sports damage suffered by student athletes mainly occurs as injuries in training situations without opponents. Our findings could help formulate basic guidelines for preventing sports injury in Taekwondo.

Protection by Ankle Brace for Lower-Extremity Joints in Half-Squat Parachuting Landing With a Backpack

Half-squat parachuting landing is a kind of activity with high impact force. Injuries on lower-extremity joints are common in half-squat parachuting landing and would be increased with a backpack. An ankle brace was used to prevent ankle injuries in landing. However, few quantitative studies reported about the protection of an ankle brace for lower-extremity joints in half-squat parachuting landing with a backpack. This study focused on evaluating the protective effects of an ankle brace in half-squat parachuting landing with a backpack. Seven male participants landed from 120 cm with a backpack and an ankle brace. Each participant performed three landing trials on every experimental condition. Kinetics and kinematics of the hip, knee, and ankle were analyzed. It was found that the ankle brace did not significantly affect the ground reaction force with backpack but increased the ground reaction force from 14.7 ± 2.0 bodyweight to 16.2 ± 1.9 bodyweight (p = 0.017) without the backpack. The ankle brace significantly (p &lt; 0.05) decreased the angular displacement, angular velocity, and angular acceleration of the ankle both without and with the backpack. In conclusion, the ankle brace could restrict ankle motion and significantly increase ground reaction force without the backpack. However, the ankle brace did not significantly influence ground reaction force and still restricted ankle motion with the backpack. Therefore, the ankle brace was more effective in half-squat parachuting landing with the backpack than no-backpack landing.

Foot and Ankle Injuries in Elite Taekwondo Athletes: A 4-Year Descriptive Analysis

Background: Foot and ankle injuries are a common but underestimated problem in taekwondo. Detailed data on injury incidence rates (IIRs), patterns, and injury mechanism are missing. Purpose: The primary aims were to evaluate the prevalence of foot and ankle injuries and the exposure-adjusted IIR of elite taekwondo athletes during matches while training (ie, sparring) and in competitions. The secondary aims were to evaluate injury site, type, sport-specific mechanism, and time loss. Study Design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods: Athletes from a single national Olympic taekwondo training center were assessed prospectively for foot and ankle injuries over 4 years (between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2019). Data were collected regarding number and type of injuries, anatomic location, and total exposure time during training and competition for each athlete. Injury mechanism and dominant foot were assessed via personal interview. Time loss from sport was analyzed retrospectively. The injury prevalence and IIR were calculated. Correlation between mechanism and injury type, location, and dominant foot was evaluated. Time loss according to location and injury type was assessed. The chi-square test and Fisher exact test were used to test for differences in sex, age, and taekwondo experience and for comparison of injury location and type, injury mechanism, and side dominance, respectively. Training and competition IIRs and prevalence were calculated with 95% CIs (for Poisson rates). Results: From an initial 107 athletes, 79 (73.8%) were included in the final data set. Of these athletes, 38 were injured (n = 112 injuries) for a prevalence of 48.1% (95% CI, 43%-52%). The overall IIR of the ankle joint was 13.14 injuries per 1000 athletes (95% CI, 1.5-25.9) and was significantly higher during competition versus training ( P < .001). Ankle joint injuries were most common (n = 71; 63%). Significantly more noncontact versus contact ankle ligament injuries (n = 46; 83%) occurred ( P < .001). The forefoot (n = 18; 66%) was mainly affected by contact injuries ( P < .001). Time loss was the highest for midfoot fractures (mean ± SD, 23.0 ± 0.6 days; range, 23-24 days). Conclusion: Noncontact ligamentous ankle injuries were most common, with a higher incidence during competition. Improvement of strength, endurance, and postural stability under strain is recommended for prevention.

Utility of Ottawa ankle rules in excluding ankle fractures in Indian scenario

<p><strong>Background:</strong> Patients with acute ankle injuries form a major bulk in outdoor and emergency room, and many of them get radiographs done to rule out fractures. Ottawa ankle rules (OAR) may reduce the need for unnecessary radiographs by detecting fractures only with help of simple clinical findings. We conducted this study to see the extent of usefulness of these rules in our day-to-day practice.</p><p><strong>Methods</strong>: Our study is observational in nature. A total of 107 patients who visited the clinic of the chief investigator between the time period from 1^st January 2019 to 31^st December 2020, fulfilling inclusion criteria and willing to participate, were enrolled. The patients were examined clinically, and the assessor recorded the findings on a previously prepared assessment form. Data analysis was done from the master chart.</p><p><strong>Results</strong>: Among the 107 patients, 46 patients were ‘suspicion positive’ by OAR. After the radiographic assessment, we found 11 fractures, all of which belonged to the ‘suspicion positive’ group. Statistical analysis showed that OAR had a sensitivity of 100% for ankle fractures, whereas specificity for the same was 63.54%. We found the positive predictive value to be 23.91% and negative predictive value to be 100%, positive likelihood ratio of 2.74, and negative likelihood ratio of 0.</p><p><strong>Conclusions</strong>: OAR is an easy and reliable tool to screen ankle fractures. In a country with as massive a health care burden as ours, it can reduce the number of unnecessary radiographs and thus reduce exposure, cost, and time of medical professionals.</p>