Evaluation of knee joint proprioception and balance of young female volleyball players: a pilot study

[Purpose] The main purpose of our study was the evaluation of the effects of long-term volleyball practice on knee joint proprioception and balance of young female athletes. [Subjects and Methods] An observational case-control study was performed. The study enrolled 19 female volleyball players in the experimental group and 19 sedentary counterparts as controls. A Biodex balance system and dynamometer were used for the evaluations. The paired t-test was used to determine the significance of differences between the performance of athletes and controls. [Results] The knee proprioception analysis showed a significant difference at 60° joint position in active and passive tests. A similar trend, but without significance, was found for the 20° joint position. In the postural stability tests both groups showed similar results with no significant differences between them. [Conclusion] In conclusion, the results indicate a significant influence on joint proprioception is elicited by long-term exposure to a team sport like volleyball. However, the postural stability indexes showed similar trends in both groups, highlighting the analogous ontogenesis of the subjects investigated and the low influence of volleyball practice on postural stability.