Elsevier

Physical Therapy in Sport

Volume 28, November 2017, Pages 15-22
Physical Therapy in Sport

Case Studies
An investigation into the immediate effects of pelvic taping on hamstring eccentric force in an elite male sprinter – A case report

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ptsp.2017.08.001Get rights and content

Abstract

Background

Hamstring Injuries commonly cause missed training and competition time in elite sports. Injury surveillance studies have demonstrated high injury and re-injury rates, which have not improved across sports despite screening and prevention programmes being commonplace. The most commonly suggested intervention for hamstring prevention and rehabilitation is eccentric strength assessment and training.

Case description

This case study describes the management of an elite sprinter with a history of hamstring injury. A multi-variate screening process based around lumbar-pelvic dysfunction and hamstring strength assessment using the Nordbord is employed. The effect of external pelvic compression using a taping technique, on eccentric hamstring strength is evaluated.

Outcomes

A persistent eccentric strength asymmetry of 17% was recorded as well as lumbar-pelvic control deficits. Pelvic taping appears to improve load transfer capability across the pelvis, resulting in correction of eccentric strength asymmetry.

Discussion

Screening strategies and interventions to prevent hamstring injury have failed to consistently improve injury rates across various sports. In this case study external pelvic compression resulted in normalising eccentric strength deficits assessed using the Nordbord. The inclusion of lumbar-pelvic motor control assessment, in relation to hamstring strength and function, as part of a multi-variate screening strategy requires further research.

Section snippets

Background

Hamstring injuries are common in elite sports requiring kicking, high speed running and sprinting, and are an important cause of missed training and competition. A series of international track and field competitions from 2007 to 2015 demonstrated that muscle injury was the most frequently occurring injury, representing 40.9% of all injuries, and among these, the hamstring was the most commonly affected muscle (Edouard, Branco, & Alonso, 2016). Bicep femoris is commonly reported to be the most

History

The athlete in this case study is a 25 year old elite sprinter who has competed for Great Britain at both the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games as part of the 4 × 100 m relay team, and the individual 200 m. His past medical history includes hamstring muscle injuries to bicep femoris in both thighs confirmed with Magnetic Resonance Imaging (Grade 1 proximal semimembranosus muscle-tendon junction injury, Left limb 2013; Grade 1 proximal semimembranosus muscle-tendon junction injury Right limb 2012). He

Screening results

The initial screening tests all took place on the same day, the results of which are shown in Table 2, Table 3. The subsequent Nordbord eccentric strength assessments were then conducted on 3 separate occasions 1, 2 and 5 weeks following the initial test day.

The main findings from the musculoskeletal and lumbar-pelvic motor control assessments were the presence of a positive FADIR test and reduced lumbar-pelvic stability measured by the leg lower and the left sided ASLR.

The testing of this

Discussion

The main finding of this case study is the positive impact that EPC had on improving hamstring strength asymmetry in an elite athlete with previous history of hamstring injury. In the taped condition, asymmetry reduced from 17% to 0.96%. Reducing asymmetry is potentially an important aspect of hamstring injury prevention and management, given that the risk of hamstring injury has been shown to increase by 30% for every 10% increase in imbalance (Bourne et al., 2015). EPC may therefore provide

Conclusion

This case study describes the positive impact of EPC on hamstring eccentric force production in an elite male sprinter, discussing the application of the Nordbord to measure eccentric hamstring strength, and how results from this can be interpreted in conjunction with commonly used musculoskeletal, and lumbar pelvic motor control tests. This athlete demonstrated reduced lumbar pelvic load transfer as assessed by the ASLR, and a 20% eccentric strength asymmetry. Following a period of

Conflict of interest

None Declared.

Ethical approval

None Declared.

Funding

None Declared.

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