Angle-specific hamstring-to-quadriceps ratio: A comparison of football players and recreationally active males

It is currently unclear how football participation affects knee-joint muscle balance, which is widely considered a risk factor for hamstrings injury. This study compared the angle-specific functional hamstring-to-quadriceps (H:Q) ratio (hamstrings eccentric torque as a ratio of quadriceps concentric...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of sports sciences 2015-02, Vol.33 (3), p.309-319
Main Authors: Evangelidis, Pavlos Eleftherios, Pain, Matthew Thomas Gerard, Folland, Jonathan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Body Mass Index
Comparative analysis
Comparative studies
Football
functional ratio
Humans
isokinetic strength ratio
Joints
Knee
Knee Joint - physiology
knee-joint imbalances
Male
muscle balance
Muscle Contraction - physiology
Muscle Strength - physiology
Muscle, Skeletal - physiology
Quadriceps Muscle - physiology
Range of Motion, Articular
reciprocal strength
Recreation - physiology
Risk factors
soccer
Soccer - physiology
Sports injuries
Torque
Young Adult
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:It is currently unclear how football participation affects knee-joint muscle balance, which is widely considered a risk factor for hamstrings injury. This study compared the angle-specific functional hamstring-to-quadriceps (H:Q) ratio (hamstrings eccentric torque as a ratio of quadriceps concentric torque at the same knee-joint angle) of football players with recreationally active controls. Ten male footballers and 14 controls performed maximal voluntary isometric and isovelocity concentric and eccentric contractions (60, 240 and 400° s −1 ) of the knee extensors and flexors. Gaussian fitting to the raw torque values was used to interpolate torque values for knee-joint angles of 100-160° (60° s −1 ), 105-160° (240° s −1 ) and 115-145° (400° s −1 ). The angle-specific functional H:Q ratio was calculated from the knee flexors eccentric and knee extensors concentric torque at the same velocity and angle. No differences were found for the angle-specific functional H:Q ratio between groups, at any velocity. Quadriceps and hamstrings strength relative to body mass of footballers and controls was similar for all velocities, except concentric knee flexor strength at 400° s −1 (footballers +40%; P 
ISSN:0264-0414
1466-447X
DOI:10.1080/02640414.2014.942680