Lower Limb Exercise-Based Injury Prevention Programs Are Effective in Improving Sprint Speed, Jumping, Agility and Balance: an Umbrella Review.
Loïc Bel, Nicolas Mathieu, Vincent Ducrest and 1 others
PMID 35237462WHAT IT FOUND
Multicomponent lower-limb injury prevention programs showed improvements in sprint speed, balance, agility and some jumping tasks in athletes.
Strength results were variable. These programs may help performance as well as injury prevention.
Key findings
01Sprint speed showed moderate effects in one review (SMD: 0.66) and weak effects in another (SMD: 0.36).
02Balance and agility results were positive but variable, including static balance SMD: 0.29 and agility SMD: 0.88 or SMD: 0.25.
03Strength results were mixed, with hamstring strength SMD: 0.56 and SMD: 0.31 but quadriceps strength SMD: 0.49 and SMD: 0.19.
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
Only five systematic reviews were included, and many primary studies appeared in more than one review, so the independent evidence base is smaller than the 61 primary studies suggest. The reviews covered many sports, ages, sexes and playing levels, so results may not transfer to a specific athlete or sport. Program length and frequency varied widely, so it is unclear which dose of exercises produced the performance effects. Compliance was not comprehensively reported, so it is unclear how much adherence influenced the results. Some speed conclusions lacked reported confidence intervals. Several included systematic reviews did not state conflicts of interest or assess publication bias.
Declared interests
The authors of this umbrella review declared no conflicts of interest. Several included systematic reviews did not state conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as proof that any lower-limb injury prevention program will improve a specific athlete's strength, speed or jumping. The review combined systematic reviews with variable results, overlapping primary studies and inconsistent program details, so it shows possible performance benefits, not guaranteed individual effects.