Comparison of gait features, balance ability, and reaction time between young female sedentary individuals and state-level netball players

Background: This study investigated the differences of gait features, balance ability, and reaction time (RT) between sedentary controls and netball players. Methods: A total of 20 healthy young females aged 15 to 17 years old were recruited and were grouped into sedentary control (n=10) and netball player (n=10) groups. The participants were required to walk 6 m down a walkway at a normal gait speed. Spatiotemporal and kinematics data were evaluated using a 3D motion analysis system. A Unipedal Stance Test (UPST) was conducted with eyes open (EO) and eyes closed (EC) for both dominant and non-dominant legs. The average time of the UPST was documented for all of the conditions. Three reaction time tests, including the Human Benchmark Test (HBT), Red-light Green-Light Test (RT), and Ruler Drop Test (RDT), were conducted. Results: The netball group showed larger values for body weight, body mass index (BMI), pelvic width, and ankle diameter than the sedentary group. Netball players exhibited a wider stride width compared to the sedentary controls in the spatiotemporal aspect of gait features. The sedentary group showed greater hip internal rotation motion than the netball group. The UPST results showed that sedentary and netball groups showed better standing balance ability for EO compared to EC. For the reaction time test, the netball group had a statistically better reaction time than the sedentary group. Conclusions: Findings of this present study indicate that netball players who are physically active exhibited better gait features, balance ability, and faster reaction time compared to sedentary individuals. These findings also imply that netball training can offer beneficial advantages for the young generation to have a better quality of life.