Relationship Between Sensory Organization Testing Scores With Lower Extremity Injuries and Prior Concussion in...

Area of Science:

• Sports Medicine
• Neurology
• Biomechanics

Background:

• Concussions and lower extremity (LE) injuries are common in professional soccer.
• The long-term effects of these injuries on postural control are not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between concussion or LE injury history and computerized sensory organization testing (SOT) performance in professional soccer players.
• To assess the reliability of SOT in this population.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study was conducted with 33 professional male soccer players.
• Data collected included age, LE injury history, and concussion history (including number of prior concussions).
• Baseline SOT was performed under 6 sensory conditions to measure postural sway.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in SOT scores were found between players with and without a concussion history.
• Players with a previous LE injury performed better on SOT condition 3 (eyes open, unstable visual surround) compared to those without.
• Younger athletes (≤25 years) performed worse on condition 3 and showed a trend towards poorer balance on other measures compared to older athletes.

Conclusions:

• Previous concussions or LE injuries in professional soccer players did not result in long-term postural control deficits as measured by SOT.
• SOT demonstrated moderate reliability over time.
• Younger athletes exhibited greater postural sway than older athletes.