Effects of Activity Type and Hip Fatigue on Knee Kinematics in Female and Male Athletes

Abstract

Landing mechanics have been documented as a risk factor for knee injuries in female athletes. This article aimed to determine the eff ect of hip abductor/external rotator fatigue and activity type on landing kinematics. Selected hip and knee landing kinematics were measured before and after a hip fatigue task in 45 healthy participants regularly performing either multiplanar or uniplanar activities. Across conditions, the multiplanar activity male group demonstrated less knee abduction than the uniplanar (P = .001) and multiplanar (P = .018) activity female groups. In addition, the uniplanar activity female group demonstrated greater knee abduction than the multiplanar activity female group (P = .031). Hip adduction during landing increased postfatigue (P = .001); however, fatigue did not affect knee kinematics. Landing kinematics may depend on activity participation, as well as gender. Therefore, it is important to classify research participants based on the type of activity in which they regularly participate.