DYNAMIC STABILIZATION IN COLLEGIATE FEMALE VOLLEYBALL PLAYERS: EFFECTS OF LEG DOMINANCE AND OFF-SEASON

Abstract

Adequate dynamic stabilization can be a key factor in preventing non-contact lower extremity injuries, especially in sports which require agile movements, such as volleyball. Individuals with functional ankle instability (FAI) took longer to stabilize in static and dynamic tasks when examining anterior/posterior (AP) and medial/lateral (ML) responses (Ross & Guskiewicz, 2004). In an effort to detect FAI in athletes, differences in time to stabilization (TTS) between post- and pre-seasons and between dominant and non-dominant legs should be identified. The purpose of the study was to identify those differences (post- vs. pre-season; leg dominance) across various hopping directions. It was hypothesized that the pre-season test and dominant leg conditions exhibit greater stability (i.e., shorter TTS) in all hopping directions.