Patellofemoral disorders are more common in female runners compared to their male counterparts. Differences in biomechanical characteristics between groups of runners could provide insight into the causes of higher rates of injury in female versus male runners, which would be useful to physical therapists and athletic trainers in development of individualized injury prevention programs. This review compares the differences in biomechanical characteristics between female and male runners. Electronic databases, including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase were searched in December 2021 for studies evaluating sex-specific differences in lower limb mechanics of healthy participants during running. Two independent reviewers determined the inclusion and quality of each research paper. Meta-analyses were used where possible. A total of 13 studies were selected. Means and standard deviations of reported data were retrieved from each selected paper for comparison of results. Three biomechanical variables, including dynamics, muscle activation, and kinematics, were compared between female and male runners. However, no differences were found in kinetic variables or muscle activation between groups due to insufficient data available from the selected studies. Meta-analyses of kinematic variables revealed that female runners exhibited significantly greater hip flexion angle, hip adduction angle, and hip internal rotation angle, but smaller knee flexion angle compared to male runners during running. We found significant differences in kinematic variables between female and male runners, which could influence the training advice of physical therapists and athletic trainers who work with runners, and inform the development of injury prevention programs.

The objective of this study was to examine the effects of running fatigue on the symmetry of lower limb biomechanical parameters in eighteen male amateur runners. The marker trajectories and ground reaction forces were collected before and after the running-induced fatigue protocol. Symmetry angles (SA) were used to quantify the symmetry of each parameter. Normality tests and Paired sample T-tests were carried out to detect bilateral lower limb differences and SA of parameters between pre- and post-fatigue. One-dimensional statistical parameter mapping (SPM_1d) was used to compare parameters with the characteristic of one-dimensional time series data of lower limbs. After fatigue, the SA of knee extension angles, knee abduction moment, and hip joint flexion moment increased by 17%, 10%, and 11% respectively. In comparison, the flexion angle of the knee joint decreased by 5%. The symmetry of internal rotation of ankle, knee and hip joints increased after fatigued, while the SA of external rotation of the three joints decreased significantly. These findings provide preliminary evidence that fatigue changes lower limb symmetry in running gait and may have implications for understanding running-related injuries and performance.

(1) Background and purpose: Muscular control and motor function in a patient with Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) have not yet been investigated systematically. Therefore, this review synthesis the previous results about the association of PFPS with gluteus muscle activation, hip strength, and kinematic characteristic of the hip and knee joint, to deepen understanding of the PFPS etiology and promote the establishment of an effective treatment strategy. (2) Methods: A literature search was conducted from January 2000 to July 2022 in four electronic databases: Medline, Embase, Google scholar, and Scopus. A total of 846 articles were initially identified, and after the screening process based on the inclusion criteria, 12 articles were eventually included. Means and SDs of gluteus medius (GMed), gluteus maximus (GMax), hip strength, and kinematic variation of hip and knee were retrieved from the present study. (3) Results and conclusion: Regarding kinematic variation, moderate evidence indicates that an increased peak hip adduction was found in PFPS groups during running and single leg (SL) squat activities. There is no difference in the GMed and GMax activation levels between the two groups among the vast majority of functional activities. Most importantly, strong evidence suggests that hip strength is weaker in individuals with PFPS, showing less strength of hip external rotation and hip abduction compared to the control group. However, without prospective studies, it is difficult to determine whether hip strength weakness is a cause or a result of PFPS. Therefore, further research is needed to evaluate the hip strength level in identifying individuals most likely to associated with PFPS development is needed.

Traditional Chinese exercise (TCE) has gradually become one of the widespread complementary therapies for treatment and recovery of cancers. However, evidence based on the systematic evaluation of its efficacy is lacking, and there appears to be no conclusion regarding the setting of TCE interventions. The purpose of this systematic review is to summarize the current randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that outline the effects of TCE on cancer patients. Relevant studies were searched by GOOGLE SCHOLAR, SCIENCEDIRECT, and WEB OF SCIENCE using “traditional Chinese exercise” and “cancer.” Only RCTs published in peer-reviewed English journals were included. A total of 27 studies covering 1616 cancer patients satisfied the eligibility criteria for this review. Despite the methodological limitation and relatively high risk of bias possessed by some included studies, positive evidence was still detected on the effects of TCE on these cancer-related health outcomes in physical, psychological, and physiological parameters. The 60-min or 90-min course of TCE intervention for two to three times per week for 10 to 12 weeks was found to be the most common setting in these studies and has effectively benefited cancer patients. These findings add scientific support to encourage cancer patients to practice TCE during or after conventional medical treatment. Nevertheless, future well-designed RCTs with improved methodology and larger sample size on this field are much warranted for further verification.

The effect of heel elevation on the barbell squat remains controversial, and further exploration of muscle activity might help find additional evidence. Therefore, 20 healthy adult participants (10 males and 10 females) were recruited for this study to analyze the effects of heel height on lower extremity kinematics, kinetics, and muscle activity using the OpenSim individualized musculoskeletal model. One-way repeated measures ANOVA was used for statistical analysis. The results showed that when the heel was raised, the participant’s ankle dorsiflexion angle significantly decreased, and the percentage of ankle work was increased (p < 0.05). In addition, there was a significant increase in activation of the vastus lateralis, biceps femoris, and gastrocnemius muscles and a decrease in muscle activation of the anterior tibialis muscle (p < 0.05). An increase in knee moments and work done and a reduction in hip work were observed in male subjects (p < 0.05). In conclusion, heel raises affect lower extremity kinematics and kinetics during the barbell squat and alter the distribution of muscle activation and biomechanical loading of the joints in the lower extremity of participants to some extent, and there were gender differences in the results.

Standing long jump (SLJ) is complicated by the challenge of motor coordination in both the upper and lower segments. This movement is also considered to be a fundamental skill in a variety of sports. In particular, SLJ is an important test index for middle school students for assessing their physical fitness levels. This assessment takes the form of a physical fitness test high school entrance examination in some countries such as China. This minireview summarizes recent studies that have investigated how to improve the standing long jump performance from different aspects which include arm motion, takeoff angle, standing posture, warming-up exercise, and handheld weight. The common study limitations, controversial knowledge, and future research direction are also discussed in detail.