A new study presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons suggests that altering how sports teams warm up could significantly reduce the likelihood of athletes sustaining a knee injury. With the number of knee ACL injuries on the rise, this information is now more important than ever.
“ACL injuries are especially common in sports that require a lot of jumping and cutting,” said Dr. Rajan Patel, Co-Medical Director of the Knee Surgery Center of Excellence, a division of La Peer Health Systems. “These activities include football, soccer, basketball, and a number of other sports.”
The ACL is one of the four main ligaments in the knee. It runs diagonally through the center of the knee and helps to hold the bones in place. The ACL is also one of the most commonly injured areas of knee, with an estimated 150,000 ACL injuries per year.
“What this study tells us,” said Dr. Patel, “is that there are better ways to warm up that can actually help prepare and train the body to reduce the risk of knee injury. These methods are called neuromuscular training.”
Neuromuscular training refers to a number of different training programs – often consisting of shuffling, squatting, jumping, and other activities – that help athletes move with more precise coordination.
“Studies suggest that neuromuscular training can actually reduce ACL tears among sports teams by 50%,” said Dr. Andrew Weiss, Co-Medical Director of the Knee Surgery Center of Excellence. “Clearly, this is something that coaches, trainers, and athletes across the country should be looking into.”
