Overview

Lower limb injuries are the most common in youth football leagues, accounting for 72% to 93% of all injuries. The leading prevention program in football today is the FIFA 11+ warm-up program, which reduces the risk of injury by 30%. Evidence from several studies confirms the addition of feedback during training reduces the incidence of injury by 40% . Recent studies have shown that the smart textile sock system is an objective, easy-to-use tool for real-time foot monitoring and is an interactive feedback tool for athletes. However, there is a lack of information on the impact of the objective feedback provided by the Smart Textile Sensor Socks System on the outcome measures of football players prevention programs. In the first phase of the project, a cross-sectional study involving youth league footballers will be conducted to identify the most effective feedback elements of the smart sock system. In the second phase, a pilot study will be conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of prevention exercises using the feedback provided by smart textile sensor socks. The results of the functional tests and the study outcomes will be selected as performance indicators to evaluate the smart textile sensor sock system. Conclusions on the use of the smart textile sensor sock system as a feedback method for injury prevention in Latvian Youth Football League players will be drawn based on the results obtained from the project.

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

1. youth football league players;
2. agree to participate in the study;
3. age from 14 to 18 years;
4. understands and speaks Latvian.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. operative treatment in the lower limb within the last 9 months;
2. injuries or pain in the lower limb during the last 6 months;
3. disorders of the vestibular apparatus
4. presence of metallic implants in the sensor application areas.