Abstract
Athletic taping is widely used in sports to prevent injury. However, the effect of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) protective taping on neuromuscular control during dynamic tasks remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the immediate effect of ACL protective taping on landing mechanics and muscle activations during side hops in healthy individuals. Fifteen healthy individuals (11 males and 4 females; age, 23.1 ± 1.4 years; height, 175.1 ± 10.4 cm; weight, 66.3 ± 11.2 kg) volunteered to participate in this study. Landing mechanics and muscle activations were measured while each participant performed single-leg hops side-to-side for ten repetitions with and without taping. An optical motion capture system and two force plates were used to collect the kinematic and kinetic data during the side hops. Surface electromyogram recordings were performed using a wireless electromyography system. Paired t-tests were performed to determine the differences in landing mechanics and muscle activations between the two conditions (taping and non-taping). The level of significance was set at p < 0.05. Compared with the non-taping condition, participants landed with a smaller knee abduction angle, greater knee external rotation angle, and smaller knee extensor moment in the taping condition. Given that greater knee abduction, internal rotation, and knee extension moment are associated with a greater risk of ACL injury, our findings suggest that ACL protective taping can have an immediate effect on dynamic knee stability. Clinicians should consider using ACL protective taping to facilitate the use of favorable landing mechanics for ACL injuries.
Highlights
Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are common in sports, as approximately 91%of ACL injuries occur during sporting activities [1]
This study aimed to investigate the effects of ACL protective taping on landing mechanics and muscle activations during side hops in healthy individuals
The results of the current study suggest that ACL protective taping techniques successfully provide knee joint dynamic stability in the frontal and transverse planes without compromising the sagittal plane shock absorption mechanism
Summary
Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are common in sports, as approximately 91%of ACL injuries occur during sporting activities [1]. At least two-thirds of ACL tears are non-contact injuries while athletes perform jumping, cutting, or pivoting with unfavorable landing mechanics, including greater knee abduction coupled with increased rotation of the tibia and increased quadriceps muscle activation [2,3]. Hewett et al [4], in a prospective study, observed that female athletes who went on to experience a non-contact ACL injury exhibited an 8◦ greater knee abduction, 2.5% greater internal knee adduction moment, 20% higher ground reaction force (GRF), and 16% shorter stance time during landing tasks, compared to athletes without subsequent ACL injury. Reported that excessive knee abduction movement and internal knee adduction moments during landing are predictors of ACL injury risk in female athletes.
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