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History Of Leg Injury Is Not Related To Indices Of Ankle Health In Female Gymnasts

2022; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; Volume: 54; Issue: 9S Linguagem: Inglês

10.1249/01.mss.0000877100.60632.7a

1530-0315

Deanna Lu, Adrian Aron, Natalie Weber, Hunter Reese, Elise Piper, Brent Harper,

Sports injuries and prevention

Female gymnastic injuries range 2.2-2.5 per 1000 athletic exposures and usually involve lower extremities, specifically the ankle. Intrinsic risk factors include prior injury, age, and body mass index. Fear of injury or re-injury, often measured by the TSK-11, negatively impacts performance and contributes to poor rehabilitation potential. PURPOSE: To explore the impact of leg injury history on indices of ankle health in female gymnasts. METHODS: Female subjects 12-18 years old (n=30, age=13.03 ± 1.88 yr.) completed the Ankle Instability Instrument (AII) to assess perception of functional instability and the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia (TSK-11) to assess fear of re-injury/movement. Ankle flexibility was determined using dorsiflexion lunge test. Hip abductor strength was assessed for both legs in a side-lying position using a hand-held dynamometer. Participants were separated into two groups: those with leg injury history (n=17) and those without (n=13). Ankle (47%), knee (23%) and foot (18%) injuries were the most commonly reported. RESULTS: There was no difference in age (13.4 ± 1.8 yr. vs 12.6 ± 1.8, p=0.29) and BMI (18.1 ± 2.6 yr. vs 17.6 ± 2.9, p=0.62) between groups. Of gymnasts reporting a history of leg injury, 71.4% perceived a functional instability compared to 12.5% of those who did not report an injury, p=0.03. The two groups were similar on their TSK-11, 22.7 ± 6.1 vs 18.8 ± 6.0, p=0.23. Additionally, there was no difference in hip abduction strength (p=0.86 for right, p=0.96 for left) or ankle flexibility (p=0.45 for right, p=0.46 for left) between groups. CONCLUSION: Female gymnasts with a history of leg injury may perceive a functional instability; however, this does not translate to an increased fear of movement. Moreover, performance in outcome measures related to ankle stability is not affected by those injuries. Gymnastics may be a sport in which regular exposure to leg injuries does not cause residual symptoms affecting ankle performance. It could also be possible that the TSK-11 is not sensitive enough to measure fear of reinjury in young female gymnasts.