Abstract
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether high-level athletes with patellar tendinopathy have diminished knee proprioceptive acuity.
DESIGN
Cross-sectional study.
SETTING
University research laboratory (institutional).
PARTICIPANTS
Twenty-one basketball and volleyball players with patellar tendinopathy (13 men and 8 women; mean age 24.5 ± 3.6; body mass index = 22.5 ± 2.0 kg/m) and an equal number of athletes without symptoms of patellar tendinopathy injury were included in this study.
ASSESSMENTS
Participants underwent knee proprioception assessments on a single day. Furthermore, age, sex, height, weight, VISA-P (Victorian Institute of Sport Assessment) questionnaire sports participation, medical history, knee injuries, previous treatment, and medication were obtained.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Knee proprioception was evaluated by assessing sense of resistance, using a weight discrimination protocol, and joint position sense (JPS).
RESULTS
No significant differences were observed in JPS at 30 and 60 degrees of knee flexion between groups (P = 0.165 and 0.481, respectively). In regard to the ability to discriminate weight, significant differences between the 2 groups were found with the tendinopathy group showing a higher percentage of error (P = 0.009), namely when the set of incremental weights varied by 10% from the standard weight.
CONCLUSIONS
Athletes with patellar tendinopathy have a diminished perception of force signals required for weight discrimination, whereas JPS remains unaffected in these athletes.
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