Relationship between Lower Extremity Fitness Levels and Injury Risk among Recreational Alpine Skiers: A Prospective Cohort Study

Abstract

Background: Although the importance of physical fitness for injury prevention is recognized in sports medicine and rehabilitation, few studies have investigated this factor among recreational alpine skiers. Objective: To determine the effect of lower extremity fitness on the risk and severity of injury among recreational alpine skiers. Method: This prospective cohort study involved 117 recreational skiers at two alpine resorts during the 2021–2022 winter season. Anthropometric characteristics, skiing skills, and lower extremity agility (hexagon test), balance (Y-Balance Test), and endurance (60-s squat test) were assessed before the winter season. All of the participants were divided into an injured group and an uninjured group, based on whether an injury was recorded throughout the season. Results: In binary logistic regression, the hexagon test duration and composite Y-Balance Test score were significant injury risk factors (p < 0.05). Ordinal polytomous logistic regression revealed no significant factors for injury severity (p > 0.05). Conclusions: Recreational alpine skiers with inferior lower extremity agility or balance may have a higher injury risk and this must be considered when assessing individual risk. In the context of injury prevention, regular neuromuscular training and testing, including agility and balance aspects should be recommended to skiers.

Muscular Fatigue and Quadriceps-to-Hamstring Ratio in Alpine Skiing in Women over 40 Years

“…Besides external influences, such as weather conditions [ 2 ], trail conditions [ 3 ], and equipment [ 4 , 5 , 6 ], internal factors of the skiing individual are important influences. Some of these factors can be altered by the skier, such as the physical condition [ 7 , 8 ], skiing skill level [ 9 ] and alcohol use [ 10 ]; others, such as age [ 9 , 11 ] and sex [ 12 , 13 ], cannot be influenced. With respect to the injury location, the knee is the most frequently injured body part in skiing [ 14 ] and females are reported to have a higher knee injury prevalence than males [ 14 , 15 ].…”