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. 2024 Jul 19;19(7):e0307538.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0307538. eCollection 2024.

Impact of different landing heights on the contact force in the medial tibiofemoral compartment and the surrounding muscle force characteristics in drop jumps

Gengchao Bi  1 , Lijun Hua  2 , Jiajie Sun  1 , Qiang Xu  1 , Guanbo Li  1
Affiliations

Impact of different landing heights on the contact force in the medial tibiofemoral compartment and the surrounding muscle force characteristics in drop jumps

Gengchao Bi et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

This study explored the impact of landing height on the tibiofemoral joint's medial compartment force (MCF) during drop jumps to help athletes prevent knee injury. Experienced male participants (N = 16) performed drop jumps with landing heights from 0.15 m to 0.75 m. Kinematic/kinetic parameters were collected using a motion capture system and a three-dimensional force platform. The Med-Lat Knee model was used to calculate biomechanical indicators of the knee joint, and data were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance and one-dimensional statistical parametric mapping (SPM1d). Findings indicated that landing height significantly affected the anterior-posterior and vertical MCF, flexion-extension torque, internal-external rotation torque, and vertical ground reaction force (p<0.05)-all increasing with elevated landing height-and significantly impacted the generated force of the vastus medialis, vastus lateralis, and vastus intermedius (p<0.05). SPM1d analysis confirmed these results within specific time intervals. Thus, both the knee moment and the MCF exhibited similar coordinated changes during drop jumps, indicating that these may be adaptive movement strategy. The impact of varying drop jump heights on muscle groups around the knee joint varied suggests that different heights induce specific muscular responses and improve muscle coordination to prevent knee joint injuries.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Specific locations of reflective markers and surface electromyography Sensors.
The left image is a front view; the right image, a rear view.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Comparison of muscle activation estimated by static optimization of the OpenSim and electromyography signals.
Notes: "SEMG" is indicative of the processed data, whereas "Activation" denotes the outcomes of muscle activation following static optimization processing within OpenSim.; Vastus Med., vastus medialis; and Vastus Lat., vastus lateralis.
Fig 3
Fig 3. SPM1d analysis of the knee joint flexion angle and vertical ground reaction force during different drop jump landing heights (N = 16).
Fig 4
Fig 4. SPM1d analysis of the knee joint moment throughout different drop jump landing heights (N = 16).
Fig 5
Fig 5. SPM1d analysis of the contact force in the medial tibiofemoral compartment during different drop jump landing heights (N = 16).
Fig 6
Fig 6. SPM1d analysis of the peri-knee muscular forces throughout different drop jump landing heights (N = 16).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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