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Jump-landing differences between varsity, club, and intramural athletes: The Jump-ACL study

Justin L. Theiss*, J. Parry Gerber, Kenneth L. Cameron, Anthony I. Beutler, Stephen W. Marshall, Lindsay J. Distefano, Darin A. Padua, Sarah J. De La Motte, Joseph M. Miller, Craig A. Yunker

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

21 Scopus citations

Abstract

Theiss, JL, Gerber, JP, Cameron, KL, Beutler, AI, Marshall, SW, Distefano, LJ, Padua, DA, de la Motte, SJ, Miller, JM, and Yunker, CA. Jump-landing differences between varsity, club, and intramural athletes: The jump-ACL study. J Strength Cond Res 28(4): 1164-1171, 2014-Abnormal movement patterns have been identified as important prospective risk factors for lower extremity injury, including anterior cruciate ligament injury. Specifically, poor neuromuscular control during the early landing phase has been associated with increased injury risk. Although it is commonly assumed that higher division collegiate athletes generally exhibit better movement patterns than lower division athletes, few studies compare the biomechanical differences on basic tasks such as jump landing between various levels of athletic groups. The objective of this study was to evaluate jump-landing and fitness differences among college-aged Intramural, Competitive Club, and National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level athletes. Two hundred seventy-seven student-athletes (222 men, 55 women; age 19.3 ± 0.8 years) categorized as NCAA Division I, Competitive Club, or Intramural level athletes were evaluated during a jump-landing task using the Landing Error Scoring System (LESS), a validated qualitative movement assessment. Fitness was measured using the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT). Results showed no significant differences in landing errors between the levels of athletic group (F2,267 = 0.36, p = 0.70). There was a significant difference in landing errors between genders (F 1,268 = 3.99, p = 0.05). Significant differences in APFT scores were observed between level of athletic group (F2,267 = 11.14, p < 0.001) and gender (F1,268 = 9.27, p = 0.003). There was no significant correlation between the APFT and LESS scores (p = 0.26). In conclusion, higher level athletes had better physical fitness as measured by the APFT but did not as a group exhibit better landing technique. The implications of this research suggest that "high-risk" movement patterns are prevalent in all levels of athletes.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1164-1171
Number of pages8
JournalJournal of Strength and Conditioning Research
Volume28
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 2014

Keywords

  • Knee
  • Landing Error Scoring System
  • LESS
  • Lower extremity injury
  • Sprain

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