Replying to Causes and prevention of acl injury in downhill skiing

that was the title of my term paper for an athletic therapy class this semester. based on peer reviewed journal articles only so it's pretty credible. if you want a copy I'll send you one but here are the main points:

-acl injury rate has increased 280% in the last 30 years, though ankle and tibial fractures have decreased 90% in the same timeframe.

causes:
- changes in equipment: new shaped skis cause higher ski to snow angles, which put the forces on different areas of the leg and knee. result- more strain on the acl
- changes in technique: with new equipment comes a new turning technique, more carving than skidding turns, uses different muscles, result- more force on acl
- poor skiing ability: 59% of all acl injuries happen to intermediate skiers. likely because they are overconfident and try things they aren't ready to do, result: more falls = more acl injuries
- gender: women more prone to acl tears due to hormones, smaller acl size, smaller and differently shaped femoral notches, alignment, hyperextension of the knee joint. result: guys are lucky.

prevention:
- education: showing a video on ski safety, how to test your own bindings, warmup, etc. reduced injury by 11%. result: video should be shown in all ski buses, resort daylodges, etc.
- fitness training: a study showed with a specialized weights, flexibility, jumping etc program acl injury rate could be reduced by 1/3.
- professional binding adjustment: having your bindings professionally adjusted and TESTED (handheld torque measuring device) can reduce acl injury rate by 7%.

yep so thats it. I thought it was an interesting topic. if you want more info I have tons, just ask.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ watch out I have BADD