Individualized Technique Feedback for Instant Technique Improvements and Knee Abduction Moment Reductions - A New Approach for 'Sidestepping' ACL Injuries?

The study measured immediate changes after one feedback session and did not test whether the technique changes were retained or transferred to unanticipated sidestep cuts. Players received visual feedback, standardized explanations, verbal instructions and outcome discussion together, so the effect of feedback alone cannot be separated. The analysis excluded four legs and 17 sham-feedback legs, leaving 75 legs; the knee valgus and vertical velocity feedback groups were small, with 16 and 5 legs analysed. The cut-off values were chosen from an existing dataset and were not intended to indicate injury risk levels. The outcomes reported were technique variables and pKAM, not ACL injury rates. Modifying foot strike angle to forefoot landing carries unknown ankle injury risk, especially for players with a history of lateral ankle sprains. High inter-individual differences in technique and knee loading persisted after feedback, and adherence to instructions did not consistently reduce knee loading.

Do not read the reductions in pKAM as evidence that ACL injuries will be prevented. The study measured immediate technique changes after visual feedback, explanations and verbal instructions, not injury outcomes, and it did not test long-term retention or transfer to unanticipated cuts.