The effect of gender and foot landing type on lower extremity biomechanics during single-leg landing

초록

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of gender and foot landing type (forefoot vs. rearfoot landing) on kinematics, kinetics, and energy absorption of lower extremity joint. Twenty males and twenty females performed single-leg landing with two different foot landing types: forefoot landing and rearfoot landing. Three-dimensional kinematic and kinetic parameters were measured using motion capture system. Greater knee valgus angle at peak vertical ground reaction force (p = 0.034) during rearfoot landing increased the risk of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in females as increasing valgus positioning from neutral alignment could increase the load on ACL. Greater contribution of ankle joint and less contribution of hip joint in energy dissipation were found in females during both forefoot (p = 0.029 and p = 0.016, respectively) and rearfoot landing (p = 0.003 and p = 0.016, respectively). These results suggest that increasing muscular activity of ankle plantarflexor could reduce shock transmission to the proximal joint in females. In addition, greater hip joint's contribution to total negative work in males induced lower hip flexion angle found in both forefoot and rearfoot landing by elevated activation of the hip extensor. In conclusion, landing strategy differs between genders in both forefoot and rearfoot landing. © © The Korean Society for Precision Engineering.

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