Efficacy of an Ankle Brace With a Subtalar Locking System in Inversion Control in Dynamic Movements

Abstract

t he ankle joint is the most commonly injured joint during sports participation. 3,13,14,19 The most recent National Collegiate Athletic Association injury data over 16 years (1988)(1989)(1990)(1991)(1992)(1993)(1994)(1995)(1996)(1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004) showed that ankle ligamentous injuries represent the highest injury rate at 14.9% of all reported injuries in 15 sports, ranging from 2.8% of all injuries for women's ice hockey to 26.6% for men's basketball. 19 Basketball, volleyball, soccer, and lacrosse are among the sports with the highest ankle injury rate. It was reported that up to 80% t Study deSign: Controlled laboratory study.t objectiveS: To examine effectiveness of an ankle brace with a subtalar locking system in restricting ankle inversion during passive and dynamic movements.t background: Semirigid ankle braces are considered more effective in restricting ankle inversion than other types of brace, but a semirigid brace with a subtalar locking system may be even more effective.t MethodS: Nineteen healthy subjects with no history of major lower extremity injuries were included in the study. Participants performed 5 trials of an ankle inversion drop test and a lateralcutting movement without wearing a brace and while wearing either the Element (with the subtalar locking system), a Functional ankle brace, or an ASO ankle brace. A 2-way repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to assess brace differences (P.05).t reSultS: All 3 braces significantly reduced total passive ankle frontal plane range of motion (ROM), with the Element ankle brace being the most effective. For the inversion drop the results showed significant reductions in peak ankle inversion angle and inversion ROM for all 3 braces compared to the no brace condition; and the peak inversion velocity was also reduced for the Element brace and the Functional brace. In the lateral-cutting movement, a small but significant reduction of the peak inversion angle in early foot contact and the peak eversion velocity at push-off were seen when wearing the Element and the Functional ankle braces compared to the no brace condition. Peak vertical ground reaction force was reduced for the Element brace compared to the ASO brace and the no brace conditions. t concluSionS: These results suggest that the tested ankle braces, especially the Element brace, provided effective restriction of ankle inversion during both passive and dynamic movements.

Ankle brace attenuates the medial-lateral ground reaction force during basketball rebound jump

“…In basketball, specifically, such an intervention can reduce the occurrence of acute ankle injuries up to 66 % 6 . One of the primary mechanisms responsible for the prevention of ankle sprains through the use of an ankle brace consists of its ability to restrict the speed and amplitude of inversion and eversion movements of the ankle at the foot's initial contact with the ground 7,8 . By controlling these movements, the ankle remains in a neutral position in the frontal plane; therefore minimizing the exposure of the ligaments of this articulation to forceful external impact in the moment of contact with the ground 3,8 .…”

“…One of the primary mechanisms responsible for the prevention of ankle sprains through the use of an ankle brace consists of its ability to restrict the speed and amplitude of inversion and eversion movements of the ankle at the foot's initial contact with the ground 7,8 . By controlling these movements, the ankle remains in a neutral position in the frontal plane; therefore minimizing the exposure of the ligaments of this articulation to forceful external impact in the moment of contact with the ground 3,8 . However, it has been shown that the biomechanical alterations resulting from the use of ankle brace can be beneficial, or even negative [9][10][11][12] .…”

“…This set of findings are of great importance since studies have shown that the passive resistance offered by the use of brace promotes the reduction of the speed and amplitude of the inversion and eversion movements of the ankle during jumps and rapid cutting maneuvers, attenuating the external forces that cause the injury of the ankle 8,9,21,27 . With regard to the landing, we observed that the use of brace attenuated the mediolateral GRF, demonstrating a protective effect in relation to the external load during the landing phase.…”

Comparison of Ankle Taping and Bracing on Ankle Biomechanics during Landing in Functional Ankle Instability

“…A suggested mechanism of efficacy of ankle stabilization methods is to limit ankle plantarflexion and ankle inversion ranges of motion (Zhang et al 2009b). In the present study, ankle stabilization did not significantly reduce ankle ranges of motion in the sagittal or frontal planes.…”

“…Two methods of ankle stabilization often available to sports medicine personnel include ankle taping and ankle bracing (Zhang et al 2009b). Ankle taping is the application of adhesive cloth tape in specific patterns to enhance the stability of the lateral aspect of the ankle joint by restricting the range of motion (Cordova et al 2002).…”