The Balance Front Hop is utilized to assess readiness for return to sports (RTS) post-injury, such as after ankle sprains or anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries. Its primary objective is to evaluate stability upon landing and identify asymmetries of the jump and landing behavior.
The key outcome parameter of the Balance Front Hop is Sway Area (Fig-1, left). It is defined as the area that covers 95% of the center of pressure (COP) data points during the holding phase. In this example, the Sway Area of the left foot is considerably greater than the right.
Further outcome parameters are Stabilization Progression (Fig-1, middle) and Time to Stabilization (Fig-1, right). In this example, Stabilization Progression on the left is more inhomogeneous compared to the right. On the right leg, the velocity of the COP decreases continuously after landing. However, it first decreases and then increases again on the left. In line with this, Time to Stabilization on the left side is also higher than on the right.
These parameters offer added value for therapists and trainers beyond subjective assessment and enable criteria-based decisions in the RTS process.
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