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Mechanisms and situations of anterior cruciate ligament injuries in professional male soccer players: a YouTube-based video analysis

  • Original Article • KNEE - ARTHROSCOPY
  • Published:
European Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery & Traumatology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background

Soccer is considered the most popular sport in the world concerning both audience and athlete participation, and the incidence of ACL injury in this sport is high. The understanding of injury situations and mechanisms could be useful as substratum for preventive actions.

Purpose

To conduct a video analysis evaluating the situations and mechanisms of ACL injury in a homogeneous population of professional male soccer players, through a search entirely performed on the YouTube.com Web site focusing on the most recent years.

Methods

A video analysis was conducted obtaining videos of ACL injury in professional male soccer players from the Web site YouTube. Details regarding injured players, events and situations were obtained. The mechanism of injury was defined on the basis of the action, duel type, contact or non-contact injury, and on the hip, knee and foot position.

Results

Thirty-four videos were analyzed, mostly from the 2014–2015 season. Injuries occurred mostly in the first 9 min of the match (26%), in the penalty area (32%) or near the side-lines (44%), and in non-rainy conditions (97%). Non-contact injuries occurred in 44% of cases, while indirect injuries occurred in 65%, mostly during pressing, dribbling or tackling. The most recurrent mechanism was with an abducted and flexed hip, with knee at first degrees of flexion and under valgus stress.

Conclusions

Through a YouTube-based video analysis, it was possible to delineate recurrent temporal, spatial and mechanical characteristics of ACL injury in male professional soccer players.

Level of evidence

Level IV, case series.

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Acknowledgements

The present study did not involved human or animal patients. All the information was obtained from public and free sources.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento Rizzoli Sicilia, Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bagheria, Palermo, Italy

    Alberto Grassi, Giulio Maria Marcheggiani Muccioli, Alice Bondi, Matteo Romagnoli & Stefano Zaffagnini

  2. Laboratorio di Biomeccanica ed Innovazione Teconolgica, Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy

    Alberto Grassi, Tommaso Roberti di Sarsina, Cecilia Signorelli, Giulio Maria Marcheggiani Muccioli & Stefano Zaffagnini

  3. Duke Medical School, Durham, NC, USA

    Stephen Paul Smiley

  4. Facoltà di Scienze Motorie, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italy

    Alessandra Agostini

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  1. Alberto Grassi
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  2. Stephen Paul Smiley
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  3. Tommaso Roberti di Sarsina
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  4. Cecilia Signorelli
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  9. Stefano Zaffagnini
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Alberto Grassi.

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All the authors declare no conflict of interest related to the design, execution and production of the present work.

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Grassi, A., Smiley, S.P., Roberti di Sarsina, T. et al. Mechanisms and situations of anterior cruciate ligament injuries in professional male soccer players: a YouTube-based video analysis. Eur J Orthop Surg Traumatol 27, 967–981 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00590-017-1905-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00590-017-1905-0

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