The Quantification of Hop Landing Balance Using Trunk-Mounted Accelerometry

Area of Science:

• Biomechanics
• Kinesiology
• Sports Medicine

Background:

• Balance is crucial for predicting, preventing, and rehabilitating injuries.
• Assessing higher-level balance functions like hop landing is necessary in clinical settings.
• Currently, no established clinical methods quantify balance performance after hopping.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify the sacral acceleration profile during hop landing.
• To determine the test-retest reliability of this measurement.
• To establish a clinical method for assessing hop landing balance.

Main Methods:

• 17 university undergraduates participated in the study.
• A trunk-mounted accelerometer recorded sacral acceleration during forward, medial, and lateral hop landings.
• The path length of acceleration traces was computed to quantify balance.

Main Results:

• Moderate to excellent reliability (ICC .67-.93) was found for hop landing balance measurements.
• Low to moderate SEM (4%-16%) and minimal detectable change (13%-44%) values were observed.
• Significant differences in balance performance were detected across different hop directions.

Conclusions:

• Trunk-mounted accelerometry can effectively quantify hop landing balance.
• This technique offers a reliable clinical tool for balance assessment.
• The findings support the use of accelerometry in injury prevention and rehabilitation protocols.