Two-Dimensional and Three-Dimensional Biomechanical Factors During 90° Change of Direction are Associated to Non-Contact ACL injury in Female Soccer Players.
Stefano Di Paolo, Alberto Grassi, Filippo Tosarelli and 4 others
PMID 37547837WHAT IT FOUND
Four of sixteen players injured their ACL.
Those players had stiffer cuts, dropping hips and leaning trunks. A simple video score caught these differences, with injured players never scoring above 7 out of 10.
Key findings
01Four of the sixteen players suffered a non-contact ACL injury during the two-season follow-up.
02Players who later injured their ACL showed greater knee valgus, less knee flexion, and pelvic drop compared to non-injured players.
03A 2D video scoring system identified at-risk players, with those who later injured their ACL never scoring above 7 out of 10.
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 a pilot with a very small sample size of only 16 players, so the results are preliminary and not conclusive. The change of direction task was pre-planned, which does not reflect the unpredictable nature of actual match play. No muscular strength data were collected, limiting the understanding of why some players had poorer movement quality. The injury rate in this cohort (25%) was much higher than typical rates (7-11%), possibly because testing occurred close to peak injury season.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume this 2D scoring system is a validated diagnostic tool for clinical use. The study was a small pilot with a high injury rate, and the authors state that larger prospective studies are necessary before benchmarks can be set.