Hip Strength and Star Excursion Balance Test Deficits of Patients with Chronic Ankle Instability

Objectives: To examine isometric hip strength in those with and without CAI, and determine the degree of Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT) variance explained by isometric hip strength.

Design: Single-blinded, cross-sectional, case-control study.

Methods: Thirty individuals with CAI, 29 lateral ankle sprain (LAS) copers, and 26 healthy controls participated. We assessed dynamic postural control with the SEBT anterior (SEBT-ANT), posteromedial (SEBT-PM), and posterolateral (SEBT-PL) reaches, and isometric hip extension (EXT), abduction (ABD) and external rotation (ER) strength with hand-held dynamometry. The CAI and LAS coper groups' involved limbs and randomly selected limbs in controls were tested. Separate Kruskal-Wallis tests compared SEBT scores and isometric hip strength between groups. Backwards linear regression models determined the degree of SEBT variance explained by isometric hip strength. Statistical significance was set a priori at P<0.05.

Results: The CAI group had lower SEBT-ANT scores compared to LAS copers (P=0.03) and controls (P=0.03). The CAI group had lower ABD compared to LAS copers (P=0.03) and controls (P=0.02). The CAI group had lower ER compared to LAS copers (P=0.01) and controls (P=0.01). ER (R=0.25, P=0.01) and ABD (R=0.25, P=0.01) explained 25% of the CAI group's SEBT-PM and SEBT-PL variances, respectively.

Conclusions: The CAI group had deficient dynamic postural control and isometric hip strength compared to LAS copers and controls. Additionally, the CAI group's isometric hip strength significantly influenced dynamic postural control performance. Future CAI rehabilitation strategies should consider hip muscular strengthening to facilitate improvements in dynamic postural control.