Does A Relationship Exist Between Range Of Motion And Proprioception Of The Ankle In Athletes

Prevention and rehabilitation methods for ankle and Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injuries now include proprioception and Range of Motion (ROM) exercises as they are proven to be successful techniques. The purpose of this study is to determine if a relationship between lower extremity proprioceptive scores and ankle ROM in uninjured female collegiate soccer athletes exist. PURPOSE: To investigate a comparison between proprioception scores and Range of Motion (ROM) scores of the ankle in female collegiate soccer athletes to determine if a relationship exists. METHODS: A one shot case study design was used to determine if a relationship exists between proprioception scores and range of motion in female collegiate soccer athletes. Proprioception was tested using the Bertec Balance Posturography Plate measuring Center of Pressure (COP) on a normal surface (NS) and perturbed surface (PS) with eyes open (EO) and eyes closed (EC) as well as measuring Limit of Stability (LOS) with eyes open. The Goniometer was used to measure Inversion and Eversion in both the left ankle (LA) and right ankle (RA) joint. RESULTS: There were no significant relationship between proprioception and ROM in the ankle documented either in Inversion or Eversion. Statistical analysis indicated inversion of the left ankle resulted in diminished proprioception scores in both a normal surface with eyes open and perturbed surface eyes open compared to both surfaces with eyes closed, (LA NS-EO p=.105, LA NS-EC p=0.84, LA PS-EO p=.225, LA PS-EC p=.094). There were no relationships between the variables due to the correlation coefficient resulting close to zero. (NS-EO: LA inversion r= 0.011, LA eversion r=0.060, RA inversion r=0.030, RA eversion r=0.006) (NS-EC: LA inversion r=0.175, LA eversion r=0.019, RA inversion r=0.003, RA eversion r=0.131) (PS-EO: LA inversion r=0.091, LA eversion r=0.017, RA inversion r=0.315, RA eversion r=0.040) (PR-EC: LA inversion r=0.165, LA eversion r=0.033, RA inversion r=1.556, RA eversion r= 0.026). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that no significant relationship exists between ankle joint ROM and proprioception scores. Further studies examining healthy uninjured ankle ROM in athletes should be conducted in order to identify relationships that could prevent ankle injuries from occurring.