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Abstract
Sport-related injuries present a complex and costly challenge for athletes, coaches, trainers, athletic programs, healthcare professionals, and communities. Increased injury risk in the lower extremities in athletes may be attributed in part to bilateral asymmetries—measurable imbalances in function or performance between the right and left limbs. To assess bilateral asymmetry, functional movement assessments (FMAs) have been shown to be a valid, reliable method. The goal of this investigation was to examine how closely asymmetry measurements relate to each other in three different movements based on those previously used in FMAs. A cohort of male and female collegiate athletes (n=104) performed drop jump, countermovement jump with rebound, and single-leg countermovement jump assessments on force platforms to measure vertical ground reaction force (vGRF) asymmetries in both concentric and eccentric phases of each movement. Asymmetry correlations were all significant at the p=0.01 level. Correlations between bilateral movements during both concentric and eccentric phases were strong (r=.573-.708), but concentric and eccentric correlations between bilateral and unilateral movements were weak to moderate (r=.278-.350), as were those between concentric and eccentric phases of the same movement (r=.440-.485). Results suggest that no movement included in this assessment correlated strong enough in asymmetry values to justify replacing one movement with another, as each provided unique asymmetry information. Differences in neurological activation and motor control between movements may have contributed to these differences in asymmetry values, as well as anthropometric variables and training unique to each athlete. An understanding of the differences in asymmetry information yielded by different movements can help clinicians optimize FMAs for the most complete picture of an athlete’s risk for injury associated with their musculoskeletal biomechanics.