Reliability of a novel dynamic test of postural stability in high-level soccer players

Paul E Beelen,Ricardo Okhuijsen,Maarten R Prins,Arnold Huurnink,Tim Hordijk,Christiaan Kruiswijk,Edwin A Goedhart,Peter Van Der Wurff,Peter A Nolte,Jaap H Van Dieën,Idsart Kingma

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e06647

Paul E Beelen, Ricardo Okhuijsen + Show 9 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e06647

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Abstract

Postural stability of athletes is commonly tested with single-leg stance (SLS) tests. However, for this population, these tests are insufficiently challenging to achieve high sensitivity. Therefore, a new dynamic SLS test based on standardized translational surface perturbations was developed. This study aimed to assess reliability, sensitivity to learning effects, and internal and concurrent validity of this novel test.Healthy soccer players (21 females, 21 males) performed 2 test sessions. Each session consisted of 2 trials. For one trial, the participant performed a 30-seconds, unperturbed SLS on each leg, followed by 12 platform perturbations per leg.Intraclass Correlation Coefficients (ICC) and correlations between outcomes were calculated for the Center of Pressure speed (CoPs) and Time To Stabilization (TTS). ANOVA was used to assess learning effects. CoPs and TTS showed a fair reliability between sessions (ICC = 0.73–0.76). All variables showed improvement over time within and between sessions (all p < 0.01) and were moderately correlated with CoPs during unperturbed SLS (r = 0.39–0.56).Single-leg dynamic postural stability testing through standardized horizontal platform perturbations yielded sufficiently reliable CoPs and TTS outcome measures in soccer players. The moderate correlations with unperturbed SLS support concurrent validity, but also indicates that the new test captures aspects of postural stability that differ from the conventional, unperturbed SLS test.

Highlights

In sports, postural stability of the lower extremity is evaluated using single-leg stance tasks on a solid or an unstable surface [1, 2, 3]
Reflecting internal validity, Time To Stabilization (TTS) correlated moderately to strongly with Center of Pressure (CoP) measures (r 1⁄4 0.52–0.66) and the CoPs correlated very strong with both CoPs ml (r 1⁄4 0.87) and CoPs ap (r 1⁄4 0.99)
We found a decrease of postural stability losses and improvements in CoPs and TTS between trails and sessions, indicating a substantial learning effect

Summary

Introduction

In sports, postural stability of the lower extremity is evaluated using single-leg stance tasks on a solid or an unstable surface [1, 2, 3]. Lower sway during the single-leg stance (SLS) test is associated with a higher level of sports performance [1, 4], better performance on various agility tests [5], and reduced ankle sprain risk [6], while higher sway is related to impairments after concussion [7, 8]. The SLS appears to provide relevant information about the sensorimotor control system, which coordinates the timing and magnitude of corrective motor actions [9]. Subserving postural stability, which is the ability to control the body position in space for the purpose of movement and balance [10]. Coordination of corrective motor actions is considered important to control the body during demanding, rapidly changing, or unexpected movement in sports such as soccer [5]. As a proxy for center of mass control, the Center of Pressure (CoP) trajectory (e.g. amplitude and speed) and horizontal ground reaction forces (HGRF) have been shown to be valid and reliable outcome measures [17, 18, 19]

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