Lower Extremity Kinematic Waveform Analysis During a Single Leg Drop Task - Including a Single Subject Design.
Nickolai Jp Martonick, Youngmin Chun, Lukas Krumpl and 1 others
PMID 36518843WHAT IT FOUND
Nine active women landed on one leg from a 60 cm box.
Group data showed no left-right differences. But every woman had at least two asymmetries when looked at individually. Averaging the group hid these personal movement patterns.
Key findings
01Group analysis found no significant differences between right and left limbs for any kinematic variable.
02Every participant showed at least two asymmetries across the six variables studied, and six of nine showed differences in all kinematic time-series.
03It remains unclear whether these observed asymmetries indicate poor movement patterns or increased injury risk.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The sample size was very small (nine women), so the findings may not apply to other populations. All participants were uninjured and physically active, so it is unknown if these patterns hold for injured athletes. The study did not measure actual injury outcomes, so it cannot confirm if these asymmetries increase ACL injury risk. Limb dominance was defined only by kicking preference, which may not reflect how people naturally land.
Declared interests
The authors declared no financial or personal relationships that could have biased the work.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the individual asymmetries as confirmed risk factors for ACL injury. The study found differences in movement patterns but did not link them to injury, and the authors note these variations may simply be natural performance variability.