Effects of specific and non-specific court footwear on anterior cruciate ligament loading during a maximal change of direction manoeuvre

Abstract

The aim of the current investigation was to examine the effects of tennis shoes and running footwear on the loads experienced by the ACL during a maximal change of direction task. Thirteen male participants performed maximal change of direction movements in tennis shoes and running footwear. Lower limb kinematics were collected using an 8 camera motion capture system and ground reaction forces were quantified using an embedded force platform. Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) loading was examined via a musculoskeletal modelling approach and the frictional properties of the footwear were examined using ground reaction force information. Differences in ACL loading parameters between footwear were examined using one-way repeated measures ANOVA and multiple regression analyses were used to determine frictional predictors of ACL loading. Peak ACL force was significantly larger in the tennis shoes (2308.35 N) in relation to running footwear (1859.21 N) conditions. In addition, it was shown that the peak rotational moment was a significant predictor of peak ACL force in the tennis shoes (Adjusted R2 = 0.68) and running footwear (Adjusted R2 = 0.61) conditions. The findings from the current investigation indicate that the specific tennis shoes examined in the current investigation may place athletes at increased risk from ACL pathology during maximal change of direction movements. However, further exploration using a more ecologically valid research design is required before this notion can be truly substantiated.