Introduction: Following the onset of maturation, female athletes have a significantly higher risk for anterior cruciate ligament injury when compared with male athletes. It is therefore important to evaluate this increased risk in this population and some possible preventative measures. Objective: To examine the effect of a neuromuscular exercise training (NME) program on hip strength and core stability in healthy adolescent females. Study Design: Randomized Clinical Trial which employed a repeated measures design. Participants: Healthy adolescent females aged 12-18 years old.
Intervention: A 5-week progressive perturbation NME program was administered according to previously described and validated methodologies. The supervised program was administered 2x/week for 5 weeks. The program consisted of a series of destabilizing perturbations that were applied to the unstable surfaces with the participant in a unilateral stance. Outcome Measurements: Hip external rotation (ER) and hip abduction strength were evaluated using held-hand dynamometry. A dynamic seated stability test was used to evaluate core stability. Vertical jump test using the Vertex was used to evaluate lower extremity functional power and performance. Results: 40 healthy adolescent females (age 13.5 ± 0.2 years, height 165.3 ± 7.5 cm, weight 70.0 ± 25.3 kg, BMI 25.2 ± 6.6 kg/m2) were recruited. Two-way ANOVAs compared hip ER and abduction strength, core stability, and vertical jump pre- and post- NME training between the control and NME groups. Independent samples t-tests demonstrated that the percentage change in hip abduction strength and core stability was different between the control and NME group, with the NME group showing more improvement at follow-up. There was no significant relationship noted between strength scores and core stability or vertical jump performance. Conclusions: Overall, the results suggest the possibility of some impact as a result of the NME program, but more research is still needed to clarify the results of this and other investigations which have examined the efficacy of NME training programs in specific at-risk populations such as physically active adolescent females.