The Association Between Body Composition and Lower Extremity Biomechanics in College Aged Female Athletes
Undergraduates: Hunter Byrd, Frank Barnett, PhD.
Faculty Advisor: Darin Padua
Department: Exercise & Sport Science
Background: Female athletes generally experience higher rates of noncontact ACL injury than men. Females typically have less lower extremity lean mass than men and experience more frontal plane knee motion, both of which may contribute to ACL injury.
Aim: Investigate the association between lower extremity lean mass and changes in neuromuscular control of the hip and knee during jump landing in response to an acute High Training Load (HTL) in college-aged female athletes.
Methods: 43 physically active college-aged females were enrolled in this study. Participant¿¿¿s lower extremity and lumbo-pelvic hip complex (LPHC) mass composition were measured using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and were normalized to total body mass. Net internal sagittal and frontal plane hip moments during a jump-landing task were measured before and after a controlled HTL exposure. Pearson-product moment coefficients were calculated between body composition and hip moments.
Results: There were significant correlations between the change in frontal plane hip moment (hip adduction moment) and subtotal lean mass normalized to body (r=0.315, p<0.05) and change in sagittal plane hip moment (hip extension moment) with Lumbo-Pelvic Hip Complex (LPHC) lean mass (r=0.326, p<0.05).
Discussion: Individuals with greater LPHC lean mass appear to have a greater capacity to manage sagittal plane energy absorption at the hip following exposure to HTL.