A Comparison of Anterior and Posterior Cruciate Ligament Laxity Between Female and Male Basketball Players

In brief: The incidence and severity of knee injuries is greater in female than male basketball players. To gain insight into this phenomenon, anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) laxity of 90 noninjured female and male high school basketball players were tested with an arthrometer and compared. With leg flexion of 25° ± 5° and 70° ± 5°, no statistically significant differences were found in ACL laxity, nor were significant right-left differences found. Differences in PCL laxity were not consistent. Thus, inadequate conditioning rather than laxity may be the major factor responsible for the higher incidence of knee injuries in female basketball players. If so, adequate preseason and inseason conditioning programs need to be implemented to correct this deficiency.