| Abstract ID |
| 20260056 |
| Category |
| Sports Medicine: Sports Biomechanics |
| Preferable Presentation |
| Oral Presentation |
| Title |
| DECREASED HIP FLEXION DURING THE FENCING LUNGE IN ATHLETES WITH PATELLOFEMORAL PAIN SYNDROME |
| Author |
|
| Presenter |
| tIANZHI jiang |
| Abstract |
| Decreased Hip Flexion During the Fencing Lunge in Athletes with Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome Background In fencing, recent epidemiological studies have identified PFP as a prominent lower extremity disorder. Despite evidence of altered kinematics in PFP patients during general tasks such as walking, running, and jumping including reduced knee flexion, decreased gait velocity, and increased knee abduction, the biomechanical profile during sport-specific movements in fencing remains underexplored. The fencing lunge, the primary offensive manoeuvre, involves rapid acceleration, deceleration, and substantial weight-bearing on the leading limb, potentially exacerbating patellofemoral joint stress. Prior research has documented gender differences in patellofemoral loading during lunging; however, no study has yet examined kinematic abnormalities in fencers affected by PFP specifically during the fencing lunge. Adaptive or compensatory changes in lower limb kinematics may intensify PFP symptoms, elevate the risk of overuse injury, and ultimately impair the performance. Objective This study aimed to compare lower extremity kinematics between fencing players with PFP and controls during the fencing lunge attack. We hypothesized that players with PFP would exhibit reduced knee flexion angles and increased knee and hip abduction angles as the adaptive kinematics alteration. Study Design & Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted with ethical approval and informed consent. Fifteen fencing players (aged 18–27 years) were recruited and divided into PFP (n=6) and control (n=9) groups based on previous PFP assessing criteria. Lower limb kinematics were recorded using seven inertial measurement units (IMUs) sampling at 200 Hz, positioned on the pelvis, bilateral thighs, shanks, and feet. Assessments occurred on a standard fencing piste with a reactive target dummy simulating competition. Participants performed five lunge attacks in response to random visual cues. Initial ground contact (IC) of the dominant limb was identified via foot pressure sensors (threshold: 2% body weight). Analysed variables included hip and knee joint angles at IC in the sagittal plane, knee joint range of motion (ROM) till maximum knee flexion after IC, and plantar pressure distribution in % of body weight at maximum knee flexion after IC. Data were processed using SPSS software, and group differences were assessed via Man-Whitney t-tests (p<0.05) in SPSS. Results The PFP group demonstrated significantly reduced hip flexion angle at IC (78.4° ± 8.0 vs 98.0° ± 6.7, p < 0.001). No significant differences were observed other lower limb kinematics. In addition, despite no statistic significant differences were found in foot pressure, a higher metatarsal plantar pressure distribution was observed at maximum knee flexion in PFP group (54.4 ± 27.9 vs 36.0 ± 31.1, p = 0.066). Conclusion Fencing players with PFP exhibit distinct proximal kinematic alterations, specifically reduced hip flexion at initial contact during the lunge. This finding aligns with evidence of hip flexor weakness in PFP, potentially limiting pelvic tilt and leg advancement, and contributing to the compensatory mechanisms during sports specific movement. Decreased hip flexion during a lunge may be associated with compensatory forward trunk lean, and results in greater anterior displacement of the knee relative to the foot, thereby further increases loading at the knee joint. |