Prediction of Injury by Limited and Asymmetrical Fundamental Movement Patterns in American Football Players

Context: Previous injury is the strongest risk factor for future injury in sports. It has been proposed that motor-control changes such as movement limitation and asymmetry associated with injury and pain may be perpetuated as part of an individual's movement strategy. Motor control of fundamental 1-x-body-weight tasks can reliably and efficiently be measured in the field. Objective: To determine whether the motor control of fundamental movement patterns and pattern asymmetry have a relationship with time-loss injury over the course of the preseason in professional football. Design: Injury-risk study. Setting: American professional football facilities. Participants: 238 American professional football players. Intervention: To measure the motor control of 1-x-body-weight fundamental movement patterns, Functional Movement Screen scores were obtained before the start of training camp. The previously established cutoff score of <= 14 and the presence of any asymmetries on the FMS were examined using relative risk to determine if a relationship exists with time-loss injury. Main Outcome Measure: Time-loss musculoskeletal injury defined as any time loss from practice or competition due to musculoskeletal injury. Results: Players who scored <= 14 exhibited a relative risk of 1.87 (CI95 1.20-2.96). Similarly, players with at least 1 asymmetry displayed a relative risk of 1.80 (CI95 1.11-2.74). The combination of scoring below the threshold and exhibiting a movement asymmetry was highly specific for injury, with a specificity of .87 (CI95 .84.90). Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that fundamental movement patterns and pattern asymmetry are identifiable risk factors for time-loss injury during the preseason in professional football players.