The impact of previous musculoskeletal injury on running gait variability: A systematic review

Sarah J Blyton; Suzanne J Snodgrass; Tania Pizzari; Samantha M Birse; Aaron D Likens; Suzi Edwards

doi:10.1016/j.gaitpost.2023.01.018

The impact of previous musculoskeletal injury on running gait variability: A systematic review

Gait Posture. 2023 Mar:101:124-133. doi: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2023.01.018. Epub 2023 Feb 4.

Authors

Sarah J Blyton¹, Suzanne J Snodgrass², Tania Pizzari³, Samantha M Birse⁴, Aaron D Likens⁵, Suzi Edwards⁶

Affiliations

¹ School of Environmental and Life Sciences, The University of Newcastle, Ourimbah, New South Wales, Australia. Electronic address: sarah.blyton@uon.edu.au.
² Discipline of Physiotherapy, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia. Electronic address: suzanne.snodgrass@newcastle.edu.au.
³ La Trobe Sport and Exercise Medicine Research Centre, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Electronic address: t.pizzari@latrobe.edu.au.
⁴ School of Environmental and Life Sciences, The University of Newcastle, Ourimbah, New South Wales, Australia. Electronic address: samantha.birse@uon.edu.au.
⁵ Department of Biomechanics and Center for Research in Human Movement Variability, The University of Nebraska, Omaha, United States. Electronic address: alikens@unomaha.edu.
⁶ School of Health Sciences, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia. Electronic address: suzi.edwards@sydney.edu.au.

PMID: 36801698
DOI: 10.1016/j.gaitpost.2023.01.018

Abstract

Background: Growing evidence suggests that identifying movement variability alterations in pathological vs. healthy gait may further understanding of injury mechanisms related to gait biomechanics; however, in the context of running and musculoskeletal injuries the role of movement variability remains unclear.

Research question: What is the impact of a previous musculoskeletal injury on running gait variability?

Methods: Medline, CINAHL, Embase, Cochrane library and SPORTDiscus were searched from inception until February 2022. Eligibility criteria were (a) included a musculoskeletal injury group, (b) compared running biomechanics data to a control group, (c) measured movement variability for at least one dependent variable, (d) provided a statistical between-group comparison of variability outcomes. Exclusion criteria were neurological conditions impacting gait, upper body musculoskeletal injuries and age < 18 years old. A summative synthesis was performed instead of a meta-analysis due to methodological heterogeneity.

Results: Seventeen case-control studies were included. The most common deviations in variability observed among the injured groups were: (1) high and low knee-ankle/foot coupling variability and (2) low trunk-pelvis coupling variability. Significant (p < 0.05) between-group differences in movement variability were identified in 8 of 11; 73% of studies of runners with injury-related symptoms, and 3 of 7; 43% of studies of recovered or asymptomatic populations.

Significance: This review identified limited to strong evidence that running variability is altered in adults with a recent history of injury for specific joint couplings only. Individuals with ankle instability or pain employed altered running strategies more often than those who have recovered from injury. Altered variability strategies have been proposed to contribute to future running-related injuries, therefore these findings are relevant to clinicians managing active populations.

Keywords: Biomechanics; Dynamical systems theory; Motor control.

Publication types

Review
Systematic Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adult
Ankle
Biomechanical Phenomena
Foot
Gait*
Humans
Lower Extremity
Running* / injuries