Isokinetic Assessment of Knee Flexor and Extensor Strength and Lower Extremity Flexibility Assessment of an NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Team.
Savanna Perkins, Paul Canavan
PMID 37425103WHAT IT FOUND
Most Division III soccer players had hamstring-to-quadriceps strength ratios below ideal targets and no one reached full knee extension.
This suggests widespread flexibility and strength imbalances, but without follow-up data, it is unclear if these specific deficits actually predict injury in this group.
Key findings
01Over 80% of participants had hamstring-to-quadriceps strength ratios below the ideal benchmarks of 60% at 60°/sec and 75% at 180°/sec.
02None of the participants achieved full knee extension (180°) during the active knee extension test, and 45% had positive Thomas tests indicating tight hip flexors.
03There were no statistically significant differences between left and right legs for any strength or flexibility measures, though some individual deficits exceeded injury-risk thresholds.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
No follow-up testing or injury surveillance was conducted, so it is impossible to know if the identified deficits predicted actual injuries. The sample size was very small (n=20), and isokinetic data was lost for three participants. The study describes a screening process and intervention distribution, not a controlled trial, so no causal conclusions about the exercises can be drawn. Flexibility measurements were taken by a single rater, and the mean values were within the accepted margin of error for goniometry (±5 degrees).
Declared interests
The authors report no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that correcting the identified strength and flexibility deficits will prevent hamstring injuries. The study did not track whether these players got injured or if the provided exercises improved their profiles, so the link between these specific screening results and clinical outcomes remains unproven in this population.