PMID- 33618560 OWN - NLM STAT- MEDLINE DCOM- 20211102 LR - 20220427 IS - 1941-0921 (Electronic) IS - 1941-7381 (Print) IS - 1941-0921 (Linking) VI - 13 IP - 6 DP - 2021 Nov-Dec TI - Differences in Lower Extremity Movement Quality by Level of Sport Specialization in Cadets Entering a United States Service Academy. PG - 588-593 LID - 10.1177/1941738121994097 [doi] AB - BACKGROUND: Sport specialization in youth athletes is associated with increased risk for musculoskeletal injury; however, little is known about whether sport specialization is associated with lower extremity movement quality. The purpose of this study was to examine differences in lower extremity movement quality by level of sport specialization in US Service Academy cadets. HYPOTHESIS: Cadets who report an increased level of sport specialization would have a lower level of movement quality than those who are less specialized. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional analysis from an ongoing prospective cohort study. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 3. METHODS: Cadets completed the Landing Error Scoring System (LESS) and a baseline questionnaire evaluating level of sport specialization during high school. Data were analyzed using separate 1-way analysis of variance models. RESULTS: Among all participants (n = 1950), 1045 (53.6%) reported low sport specialization, 600 (30.8%) reported moderate sport specialization, and 305 (15.6%) reported high sport specialization at the time of data collection during the first week. Ages ranged from 17 to 23 years. Men (1491) and women (459) reported comparable specialization levels (P = 0.45). There were no statistically significant differences in lower extremity movement quality by level of specialization for all subjects combined (P = 0.15) or when only men were included in the analyses (P = 0.69). However, there were statistically significant differences in movement quality by level of specialization in women (P = 0.02). Moderately specialized women had the best movement quality (mean, 4.63; SD, 2.21) followed by those with high specialization (mean, 4.90; SD, 2.08) and those with low levels of specialization (mean, 5.23; SD, 2.07). CONCLUSION: Women reporting moderate sport specialization had improved movement quality and significantly better LESS scores compared to those with high/low specialization. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Athletes, especially women, should be encouraged to avoid early sport specialization to optimize movement quality, which may affect injury risk. FAU - Venrick, Cpt Connor B AU - Venrick CCB AD - John A. Feagin Jr Sports Medicine Fellowship, Keller Army Hospital, United States Military Academy, West Point, New York. FAU - Miraldi, Story F AU - Miraldi SF AD - John A. Feagin Jr Sports Medicine Fellowship, Keller Army Hospital, United States Military Academy, West Point, New York. FAU - DiStefano, Lindsay J AU - DiStefano LJ AD - The University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut. FAU - Peck, Karen Y AU - Peck KY AD - John A. Feagin Jr Sports Medicine Fellowship, Keller Army Hospital, United States Military Academy, West Point, New York. FAU - Posner, Ltc Matthew A AU - Posner LMA AD - John A. Feagin Jr Sports Medicine Fellowship, Keller Army Hospital, United States Military Academy, West Point, New York. FAU - Houston, Megan N AU - Houston MN AD - John A. Feagin Jr Sports Medicine Fellowship, Keller Army Hospital, United States Military Academy, West Point, New York. FAU - Padua, Darin A AU - Padua DA AD - The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. FAU - Marshall, Stephen W AU - Marshall SW AD - The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. FAU - Cameron, Kenneth L AU - Cameron KL AD - John A. Feagin Jr Sports Medicine Fellowship, Keller Army Hospital, United States Military Academy, West Point, New York. LA - eng PT - Journal Article DEP - 20210222 PL - United States TA - Sports Health JT - Sports health JID - 101518422 SB - IM MH - Adolescent MH - Adult MH - *Athletic Injuries MH - Cross-Sectional Studies MH - Female MH - Humans MH - Lower Extremity/injuries MH - Male MH - Prospective Studies MH - Risk Factors MH - United States MH - Young Adult PMC - PMC8558992 OTO - NOTNLM OT - military OT - movement quality OT - sport volume COIS- The following authors declared potential conflicts of interest: S.W.M. has received grants from Geneva Foundation, CDC, and NFL. K.L.C. has received royalties from Springer. EDAT- 2021/02/24 06:00 MHDA- 2021/11/03 06:00 PMCR- 2022/02/22 CRDT- 2021/02/23 05:38 PHST- 2021/02/24 06:00 [pubmed] PHST- 2021/11/03 06:00 [medline] PHST- 2021/02/23 05:38 [entrez] PHST- 2022/02/22 00:00 [pmc-release] AID - 10.1177_1941738121994097 [pii] AID - 10.1177/1941738121994097 [doi] PST - ppublish SO - Sports Health. 2021 Nov-Dec;13(6):588-593. doi: 10.1177/1941738121994097. Epub 2021 Feb 22.