Do neoprene sleeves and prophylactic knee braces affect neuromuscular control and cutting agility?

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effects of neoprene sleeves (NSs) and prophylactic knee braces (PKBs) on neuromuscular control and cutting agility.DESIGN: Markerless motion-capture technology tracked subjects (1) without a brace as a control (2) with NSs and (3) with PKBs during single-leg drop vertical jump (SLDVJ), single-leg squat (SLS), Y-excursion, and cutting movements. Movements were recorded five times per bracing condition in three different sessions.SETTING: University laboratory.PARTICIPANTS: Ten healthy, active subjects (5 male, 5 female; age range, 22-26 years).MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Degrees of motion and time to completion.RESULTS: Use of NSs and PKBs reduced subjects' hip internal rotation in the loading phase of SLDVJ (p?=?0.026, 0.02) and SLS (p?=?0.005, <0.001), reduced knee flexion in the loading phase of SLDVJ (p?=?0.038, <0.001), and reduced knee frontal plane abduction (FPA) with SLS (p?=?0.015, 0.024) and Y-excursion (p?=?0.002, 0.005) compared to control. Use of PKBs decreased subjects' hip internal rotation in the Y-excursion (p?=?0.024) and reduced knee FPA in the SLDVJ loading phase (p?=?0.014) compared to control. There was no difference in cutting agility for either group (p?=?0.145, 0.347).CONCLUSION: Both NSs and PKBs positively impacted neuromuscular control without impacting cutting agility.

View details for DOI 10.1016/j.ptsp.2019.05.007

View details for PubMedID 31203143