Use of double leg injury screening to assess single leg biomechanical risk variables

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of this article was to determine if differences in kinematic and kinetic variables observed in a double-leg screen carried over to a single-leg task.

Design: We used a case-control design with grouping based on performance during a double-leg jump landing.

Setting: All participants were selected from a large university setting and testing was performed in a biomechanics laboratory.

Participants: Participants were females between 18 and 25 years of age with at least high school varsity experience in one or more of the following sports: soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, rugby, basketball, or team handball.

Main outcome measures: Primary outcome measures were knee angles in the frontal and sagittal planes as well as vertical ground reaction force (vGRF).

Results: There were significant between group differences in peak knee flexion and knee flexion displacement during both the double and single-leg tasks, however between group differences for peak knee valgus and knee valgus displacement noted in the double-leg task were not observed in the single-leg task. vGRF was significantly different in the single-leg task but not the double-leg task.

Conclusion: A double leg screening may not provide complete identification of risk of injury during sports requiring single leg tasks.

Keywords: Double-leg; Injury; Screening; Single-leg.