Biomechanical Effects Of Different Sidestep Cutting Angles On Ankle Joint

Objective: The trajectory and ground reaction force data of human body were recorded during sidestep cutting.The biomechanical performance of ankle and subtalar joints under different sidestep cutting angles and limb dominance were evaluated from the level of joint angles,joint moments and muscle forces.It can provide some references for physically active participants to make exercise advice and choose a reasonable exercise pattern.Methods: Twelve male physically active participants(age: 23.3 ± 2.6 years,height: 178.9± 3.5 cm,body weight: 73.8 ± 5.7 kg)were recruited without serious musculoskeletal injury before the experiment and no acutely physical activities 12 hours before the experiment.Vicon infrared motion capture system and AMTI three-dimensional force platform were used to collect trajectory and ground reaction force data.The collected data was converted into recognizable file format by MTALAB,and then was imported into OpenSim.By running the procedure of Scale,Inverse kinematics,Inverse dynamics,Residual reduction algorithm and Static optimization in OpenSim,information of kinematics,dynamics and muscle forces on musculoskeletal system was obtained.Sigma Plot was employed to standardize the needful data and two-way repeated measures ANOVA was used for statistical analysis of the dependent variables.Results: Sidestep cutting angle had significant effects on ankle dorsiflexion-plantarflexion angles(p<0.001).Limb dominance did not affect the angle change of ankle(p=0.797)and subtalar joints(p=0.277).The ankle joint showed significant differences in dynamics from initial contact to push off and peak value(p=0.007 for limb dominance;p < 0.001 for sidestep cutting angle).No significant differences were found in subtalar joint and peak inversion angle(p=0.398 for limb dominance;p=0.577 for sidestep cutting angle).But in the second half of the cycle,sidestep cutting angle and limb dominance factors can have a significant impact on it.There were significant differences in muscle forces due to limb dominance and sidestepping cutting angle.The sidestep cutting angle mainly affects the plantar flexors(soleus(p<0.001),medial head of gastrocnemius(p=0.002),lateral head of gastrocnemius(p=0.020)),and the limb dominance mainly affects the evertors(peroneus longus(p=0.044)and peroneus brevis(p=0.028)).Conclusion: The effect of limb dominance and sidestep cutting angle on sidestep cutting should be considered when performing the movement.Changes in these two independent variables can result in changes in ankle and subtalar joint angles,moment,plantarflexion muscles and eversion muscle groups.On the sagittal plane,the propulsion of the dominant lower limb was stronger.On the frontal plane,the non-dominant side produced a stronger contraction to stabilize the joint.The smaller sidestep cutting angle increased the range of motion of the ankle joint,and the peak ankle moment and plantarflexion muscle forces were also larger.Physical activity participants should pay attention to the choice of angle and lower limbs when performing movements to improve performance levels and reduce the potential risk of injury.