Single-leg drop landing movement strategies 6 months following first-time acute lateral ankle sprain injury

No research exists predicating a link between acute ankle sprain injury‐affiliated movement patterns and those of chronic ankle instability (CAI) populations. The aim of the current study was to perform a biomechanical analysis of participants, 6 months after they sustained a first‐time acute lateral ankle sprain (LAS) injury to establish this link. Fifty‐seven participants with a 6‐month history of first‐time LAS and 20 noninjured participants completed a single‐leg drop landing task on both limbs. Three‐dimensional kinematic (angular displacement) and sagittal plane kinetic (moment of force) data were acquired for the joints of the lower extremity, from 200 ms pre‐initial contact (IC) to 200 ms post‐IC. Individual joint stiffnesses and the peak magnitude of the vertical component of the ground reaction force (GRF) were also computed. LAS participants displayed increases in hip flexion and ankle inversion on their injured limb (P