Sex and Maturation Differences in Performance of Functional Jumping and Landing Deficits in Youth Athletes.
Azahara Fort-Vanmeerhaeghe, Ariadna Benet, Sergi Mirada and 2 others
PMID 30222476WHAT IT FOUND
Female athletes showed more knee valgus at landing and more technique decline than male athletes.
Deficits usually decreased with maturation, but female athletes did not improve knee valgus as they matured.
Key findings
01Only knee valgus at landing showed a significant sex-by-maturation interaction (P = .049); males improved with maturation, females did not.
02Females had significantly more landing deficits than males on knee valgus at landing and technique decline.
03Landing deficits generally decreased with increased maturation status.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study was cross-sectional, so it compared different athletes at different maturational stages rather than following the same athletes through maturation. The sample was relatively small, and the pubertal male group had fewer participants than the number of variables analysed. Athletes with previous or chronic injury were not excluded, so some deficits may reflect old injury rather than current sex or maturation differences. The test used two-dimensional video, which the authors note has precision limitations compared with 3D motion capture. The study did not show that tuck jump deficits predict ACL injury or that training changes reduce injury.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that more tuck jump deficits mean an athlete will sustain an ACL injury or that a training programme will prevent one. The study measured movement differences at one time point, did not test an intervention, and the authors state the test is not intended to predict injuries.