Immediate effect of verbal cues on ACL injury relevant Knee loading during 180° and 90° cutting maneuvers in female university soccer and basketball athletes.

Young female athletes possess a high risk of rupturing their anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). High external peak knee abduction moments (pKAM) are a likely key risk factor for non-contact ACL injuries. The

Aim: of this study was to evaluate the effect of performance-based movement feedback on pKAM during cutting maneuvers in female university athletes. Thirty-four female university soccer and basketball athletes completed preplanned 180° and 90° cutting trials while ground reaction forces and kinematics were simultaneously captured. Participants immediately received verbal cues targeting foot strike angle, foot progression angle, or trunk lean angle based on their performance. Athletes then repeated the trials post-feedback. Changes in pKAM between baseline and post-feedback trials were analyzed. Soccer and basketball athletes who received the FOOT strike-angle cue significantly reduced pKAM for both cutting tasks (Soccer: 180°; -0.21 Nm/kg, p pro-angle cue significantly reduced pKAM during the 180° cut for soccer athletes (-0.10 Nm/kg, p = 0.01, d = 0.60), but not basketball. The TRUNK lean cue did not significantly affect pKAM for either sport. Individual feedback targeting forefoot landings and neutral foot progression angles can elicit immediate technique change and reduce ACL injury relevant knee loading during cutting maneuvers.