ReviewSports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.)2016
Stiffness as a Risk Factor for Achilles Tendon Injury in Running Athletes.
Review in Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 32 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
32 citing papers in PubMed, 65 citations in OpenAlex.
- The effect of manual therapy on gastrocnemius muscle stiffness in healthy individuals.Foot (Edinburgh, Scotland) · 2019Trial
- Trial
- Serial sarcomere adaptation to eccentric overload training is blunted in ovariectomized rats.Physiological reports · 2026Article
- Stiffness and Running Performance: From the Tissue to the Body: A Narrative Review.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Review
- Repeated static stretching was more effective for increasing range of motion and decreasing passive stiffness than a combination of a thermal agent with static stretching.Biology of sport · 2026Article
- Is There a Pathologic Running Motion Associated with Running-Related Injuries? A Methodological Study Using a Motion Analysis System Without Sensors.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2024Article
- Muscle stiffness indicating mission crew health in space.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- The Influence of Menstrual Cycle Phases on Maximal Strength Performance in Healthy Female Adults: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- Impact loading in female runners with single and multiple bone stress injuries during fresh and exerted conditions.Journal of sport and health science · 2023Article
- Effect of Anthropometric Parameters on Achilles Tendon Stiffness of Professional Athletes Measured by Shear Wave Elastography.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Article
- The Effects of Static Stretching Intensity on Range of Motion and Strength: A Systematic Review.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2023Review
- Morphological and viscoelastic properties of the Achilles tendon in the forefoot, rearfoot strike runners, and non-runnersFrontiers in physiology · 2023Article
- Surface effects on kinematics, kinetics and stiffness of habitual rearfoot strikers during running.PloS one · 2023Article
- Comparison of ankle force, mobility, flexibility, and plantar pressure values in athletes according to foot posture index.Turkish journal of physical medicine and rehabilitation · 2022Article
- Exercise Effects on the Biomechanical Properties of the Achilles Tendon-A Narrative Review.Biology · 2022Review
- Injury Prevention, Safe Training Techniques, Rehabilitation, and Return to Sport in Trail Runners.Arthroscopy, sports medicine, and rehabilitation · 2022Article
- Dynamic Load Model Systems of Tendon Inflammation and Mechanobiology.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2022Review
- Comparison of 2-D and 3-D Analysis of Running Kinematics and Actual Versus Predicted Running Kinetics.International journal of sports physical therapy · 2022Article
- Clinical and Radiological Outcomes of Operative Therapy in Insertional Achilles Tendinopathy With Debridement and Double-Row Refixation.Foot & ankle international · 2021Article
- Effects of Dry Needling of Latent Trigger Points on Viscoelastic and Muscular Contractile Properties: Preliminary Results of a Randomized Within-Participant Clinical Trial.Journal of clinical medicine · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundOveruse injuries are multifactorial resulting from cumulative loading. Therefore, clear differences between normal and at-risk individuals may not be present for individual risk factors. Using a holistic measure that incorporates many of the identified risk factors, focusing on multiple joint movement patterns may give better insight into overuse injuries. Lower body stiffness may provide such a measure.
objectiveTo identify how risk factors for Achilles tendon injuries influence measures of lower body stiffness.
methodsSPORTDiscus, Web of Science, CINAHL and PubMed were searched for Achilles tendon injury risk factors related to vertical, leg and joint stiffness in running athletes.
resultsIncreased braking force and low surface stiffness, which were clearly associated with increased risk of Achilles tendon injuries, were also found to be associated with increased lower body stiffness. High arches and increased vertical and propulsive forces were protective for Achilles tendon injuries and were also associated with increased lower body stiffness. Risk factors for Achilles tendon injuries that had unclear associations were also investigated with the evidence trending towards an increase in leg stiffness and a decrease in ankle stiffness being detrimental to Achilles tendon health.
conclusionFew studies have investigated the link between lower body stiffness and Achilles injury. High stiffness is potentially associated with risk factors for Achilles tendon injuries although some of the evidence is controversial. Prospective injury studies are needed to confirm this relationship. Large amounts of high-intensity or high-speed work or running on soft surfaces such as sand may increase Achilles injury risk. Coaches and clinicians working with athletes with new or reoccurring injuries should consider training practices of the athlete and recommend reducing speed or sand running if loading is deemed to be excessive.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.