Prevention of Knee Injuries

The fun part of volleyball is getting to bump, set, and spike. However, volleyball players are at risk at getting musculoskeletal injuries, such as shoulders, fingers, wrists, ankles, and knees. These injuries can be acute or chronic injuries that can make it challenging to play the game, and even force a player to sit out till recovered. While volleyball is not a contact sport, it is still a high risk sport due to traumatic injuries. Knee injuries such as Patellar Tendonitis, or “Jumper’s Knee” and Anterior Cruciate Ligament tears, or “ACL” tears are the most common volleyball injuries.

These injuries may occur from the extensive amount of twisting, side-to-side, and jumping movements. There are many way to prevent knee injuries in regards to volleyball, the first step is to identify the injury, understand how or why these injuries occur, and how to prevent and recover from them.

As there can be many frequent knee injuries in volleyball, an ACL tear and Patellar Tendonitis are the most common.

Chiropractor, Dr. Melissa Kelling, stated the most volleyball related knee injury she treats in the “Jumper’s Knee”. Patellar Tendonitis is the most frequent overuse, or chronic injury in the game of volleyball (Deda and Kalaja, 2015). In easy terms, Jumper’s Knee is an injured tendon consisting of scar tissue (MacDonald, et all. 2018). The Anterior Cruciate Ligament, or ACL is a key ligament in keeping the knee joint stable (Deda and Kalaja, 2015). Players who have a greater vertical jump face higher risks in injuring either of these two common injuries.

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Playing any sport, players are at risk of musculoskeletal injuries, but understanding how and why is useful knowledge in preventing these injuries. Players face acute and chronic injuries. Volleyball is a sport that one of the most dominating movements in the consistent jumping patterns, which is why more acute injuries occur. Jumper’s Knee comes from the overuse of jumping and landing. The knee faces strong impacted force when landing on a solid surface, especially from high jumps. ACL tears occur most often from “stopping suddenly, sudden change in directions, and landing after jumping with extended knee” (Deda and Kalaja, 2015). Most injuries occur due to the lack of stability, strength, coordination or balance, and mobility, or flexibility (Gouttebarge, et all. 2017). Putting the extra time into exercises for preventing these injuries can go a long way.

Dr. Melissa Kelling had some really great insight on how she treats volleyball related knee injuries, as well on her recommendations on preventing them. Her first recommendation was to build adequate strength in the quadriceps and hamstrings. She said strong quadriceps support the knee joints, and strong hamstrings support the knee and connecting tissue aligned. She stressed how important correct form for strength training is also important as the body creates muscle memory. Flexibility is important because it reduces injury by allowing your body and muscles to move in full motion. Dr. Kelling stated how important doing daily jumping and landing exercises can be a big game changer in reducing knee injury, as long as the proper form is followed. She said being able to build up that strength will essentially make all the difference in the world. In the end, prevention exercises are meant to avoid chronic injuries. Ultimately, her best advice when dealing with acute knee injuries is to ice often and simply rest.

Players should have a team demonstrating the most adequate prevention care plan from parents, coaches, athletic trainers, and doctors. Prior to any activity, the warm-up is important. This is where them muscles get warmed up in preparation for an intense activity. Developing proper form is another crucial piece to being able to perform at a high level when it comes to stretching and developing strength. Being well educated about possible injuries as a coach and a player are important because it reduces the challenges of what could happen.