Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2026 Jun 8;14:1767092. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2026.1767092. eCollection 2026.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Proprioceptive deficits following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury increase reliance on visual input in athletes after ACL reconstruction (ACLR). Visual disruption may therefore alter movement patterns and increase re-injury risk. However, its influence on lower limb biomechanics during cutting maneuvers in ACLR athletes remains unclear.
PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of visual disruption on the kinematic and kinetic characteristics of the lower limb during the 90° cutting maneuver in athletes after ACLR.
METHODS: Twenty athletes after ACLR and twenty healthy athletes were recruited to randomly undergo two different visual conditions, eyes-open and visual disruption, and to complete the 90° cutting maneuver in each of the two visual conditions. Visual disruption was performed with strobe glasses. A nine-camera infrared motion capture system (Vicon T40, 200 Hz) was used to collect lower-limb kinematics data during the 90° cutting task, while a three-dimensional force platform (Kistler, 1,000 Hz) recorded kinetic data. Data were processed using Visual 3D software, and statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS (version 25.0). A two-factor repeated measures analysis of variance was used to determine the effects of group and visual conditions on kinematic and kinetic variables.
RESULTS: (1) Compared with the eyes-open condition, the peak knee valgus angle (P = 0.025, ES = 0.157) and peak ankle inversion angle (P = 0.005, ES = 0.233) of athletes after ACLR were significantly increased under visual disruption conditions. There was no significant difference between the kinematic variables of the healthy athletes in the two visual conditions (P > 0.05). (2) Compared with the eyes-open condition, the hip extension moment of athletes after ACLR was significantly increased (P = 0.037) and the knee extension moment was significantly reduced (P = 0.039) under visual disruption conditions. There was no significant difference (P > 0.05) in the kinetic variables of the healthy athletes between the two visual conditions.
CONCLUSION: Visual disruption increased knee valgus and ankle inversion angles in athletes after ACLR, which may increase the risk of secondary anterior cruciate ligament injuries and lateral ankle sprains. These results suggest that ACLR athletes have a poorer ability to recalibrate sensory information to visual disruption compared to healthy athletes.
PMID:42339465 | PMC:PMC13284120 | DOI:10.3389/fbioe.2026.1767092
