Sports Injuries : Athletes And Sports

The Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and the Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL) are located inside the knee joint. The ACL and PCL form an ‘X’ behind the kneecap (patella), with the ACL resting in front of the PCL. Both of these ligaments are responsible for controlling the back and forth motion of the knee joint; however, the ACL is responsible for stabilizing the kneecap ). In addition, the ACL is responsible for preventing the shin bone (tibia) from sliding forward on the thigh bone (femur). The ACL provides the knee with stability while an individual pivots or twists. This ligament is critical because without it, performing any kind of rotational activity is impossible, particularly when it comes to playing sports like soccer and basketball.

The ACL originates from the medial and anterior aspect of the tibial plateau and runs superiorly, laterally, and posteriorly toward its insertion on the lateral femoral condyle. Together with the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL), the ACL guides the instantaneous center of rotation of the knee, therefore controlling joint kinematics. To a lesser degree, the ACL checks extension and hyperextension. The ACL is not as strong as the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL), and it is less strong at its femoral origin than at its tibial insertion. Muscles surrounding the knee joint contribute to knee stabilization during lower extremity movements.

The ACL works with the PCL (posterior cruciate ligament), which crosses over it to form an "X." Together, these two ligaments help keep the knee stable when rotating. The ACL keeps the shin bone in place and prevents it from moving too far forward and away from the knee and thigh bone. It prevents the shin bone

The Ulnar collateral ligament that will be discussed is the ligament in the inner part of the elbow that connects your Humerus to your Ulna, its purpose is to help support and stabilize the arm ( ). An Ulnar Collateral Ligament (UCL) tear occurs when that ligament that connects the Humerus to the Ulna is put under repetitive stress or trauma that causes the ligament to tear. Movements that can put stress on this ligament are actions such as repeatedly throwing a baseball or spiking a volleyball. These actions move the elbow in a way that does not work in the flex/extend motion that the hinge joint of the elbow works in. Because of this, Baseball and Volleyball are the most common sports where this injury occurs ( ).

In the past an injury to the ACL has been considered “career ending.” The anatomy of the anterior cruciate ligament is created to support the knee. The ACL creates a cross in the knee when prepared with the posterior cruciate ligament, PCL. The job of the anterior cruciate ligament is to keep the tibia from moving anteriorly and the femur from rotating.

The knee is a complex joint. There are many different injuries that can occur during sports. The most predominant type of injuries to the knee is those done to the Meniscus and the ligaments. There are two areas of ligaments that are commonly affected; the cruciate ligaments and the Collateral ligaments. Within the Cruciate ligaments there are posterior and anterior injuries, and within the Collateral ligaments there are medial and lateral injuries. It is very important that these injuries be taken seriously in athletics due to the seriousness of their affects to the knee.

A test on the functional anatomy of the ACL by Amis showed that the different functional bundles of the ACL contribute to resisting anterior subluxation of the knee during flexion and extension. The ACL also plays a role in stabilization against rotatory loads (Petersen, 2006). Rotary loads occur in the knee when a force causes the turning of the tibia and/or femur inward or outward. Due to the connection of the ACL to both of these bones, it aids in stabilizing them and preventing their sliding (Tortora, 2009)

This short and round ligament, like all other ligaments, prevents slippage within the joint and allows the joint to properly pivot when performing an action (Duff 300). Without this particular ligament, the knees would be fragile and more susceptible to injury. Therefore, it would be impossible to do the simplest movements that are done by humans everyday, like walking and even sitting. This is one reason why many athletes should be aware of the physical indications that arise if they have torn their ACL while participating in athletic activities.

There are also the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and the Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL). These two ligaments coexist in the center of the knee and balance out the weakness of the other; the ACL “prevents the shin bone from sliding out in front of the thigh bone” while the PCL “prevents the shin bone from sliding backwards under the femur” (Vorvick). Despite how the ACL and the PCL work together, the ACL is one of the most well-known major injuries in sports.

According to yard house from “ A comparison of high school sport injury surveillance data reporting by certified athletic trainer and coaches”, “High school athletes sustain more than 1.4 million injuries annually”. Many of these injuries are caused because public high school do not provide enough professional care for athletes. Some of the reasons that athletes are not provided with right care is because of insurance, proper equipment and educated professionals to treat injuries.

The Anterior Cruciate Ligament “…is a primary restraint to anterior drawer of the tibia” (Halewood & Amis, 2015, p. 2790) which means that it keeps the tibia from moving too far forward. Providing controlled extension, it is also a primary player in knee stability (Kisner & Colby, 2012, p. 803). It

When it comes to your ability to move around, participate in sports, and simply walk, your knee joints are vital. The knee itself is made up of multiple ligaments, bones, and tendons and of all of these different parts that need to work together to make the joint work. One of these parts is called the medial collateral ligament or MCL. It is responsible for adding a little more stability to your knee and leg as well as preventing your knee from bending in dangerous directions. If you are noticing some pain in the inside portion of your knee or possibly you feel unsteady on one or both of your feet you may have injured your MCL.

An ACL is the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) which is a ligament in the knee and is an essential internal stabilizer of the knee joint and helps in restraining hyperextension. It is injured when it’s when the biomechanics of this ligaments limits are exceeded or over stretched, often with a hyperextended mechanic. It was thought that

Most athletes never learn the proper skills to play sports safely and correctly. Coaches should teach their athletes the correct safety procedures before sending a player out to practice or play. A common error by many parents is that safety precautions do not need to be taught until more advanced levels of play. This mistake often increases athletes chance of dangering themselves because by the time they are at a more professional level, it is too late to teach them proper safety regulations. Athletes make simple mistakes of doing everything incorrectly that includes using the equipment properly. Player contact injuries represent a high level of high school sport injuries and had an increasingly higher rate this past year. In his article Epidemiology of Exceptional Heat Illness among U.S. High School Athletes Zachary Kerr describes how intense player contact injury has increased over the years and how football is most competitive sport with these injuries. These injuries usually take place at the ankle/foot, head/face and then the knee. Player contact is the most natural way of injury among high school athletes, and happens to be the most difficult one to stop. In Tim McGuir’s Sports Injuries in High School Athletes: A Review of Injury-Risk and Injury-Prevention Research he touches also on the subject of physical contact

The ACL is the most common knee ligament to get injured. The ACL injury causes from taking a hard hit on