SCREENING TEST FOR THE POTENTIAL RISK OF ACL RUPTURE OF FEMALE AND MALE SOCCER PLAYERS

Abstract

ACL rupture is a devastating injury. An analysis of risk factors and a consecutive preven-tion program might help to reduce the risk of injury. However there exists no screening test to identify the individual ACL-injury risk. The purpose of this study was to develop a screening test by which the potential risk of ACL rupture for female and male soccer players can be estimated. Testing procedure focussed on dynamical knee valgus in fron-tal plane during landing of a drop jump in normal and fatigued state. The results were ob-tained by 2D video analysis. Results show a wide range of dynamical knee valgus in both sexes with a 5.4 cm greater dynamical valgus of women emphasizing the distinctly higher risk potential for ACL injury of women. Screening tests seem to be suitable to achieve an estimation of the individual risk for ACL injuries without large expenditure.