Netball Australia has launched The KNEE Program, which is a warm-up program aimed to reduce lower limb injuries (specifically Anterior Cruciate Ligament injuries in the knee) in netballers.

Anterior Cruciate Ligament injuries account for roughly a quarter of all serious netball injuries and have a significant impact on the lives of the injured individual.

The majority of injuries sustained during netball occur when the player lands from being in the air. The KNEE Program “targets safe take off and landing technique with specific attention to the overhead position required of netballers.”

The KNEE Program stands for Knee injury prevention for Netballers to Enhance performance and Extend play. There are 3 variations of the program catering to all netballers – Junior, Recreational & Elite. The program can be found at www.knee.netball.com.au and has a host of resources to explain the program in detail including videos of the program components.

We strongly encourage netballers and coaches to commence using the program on a regular basis and that this contributes to an overall reduction in serious lower-limb netball injuries.

CAM boots, moon boots, fracture boots….they are all different names for the same thing.

A CAM boot is used to help immobilise the foot and/or ankle following injury/surgery to allow for healing to occur. They are useful in managing the following conditions:

• Foot/ankle fractures,
• Severe ankle sprains,
• Following foot/ankle surgery.

There are a range of different CAM boots available and the right boot depends on the specific injury. There are short boots, long boots, boots that allow some movement and boots that allow no movement at all.

Arrow Physiotherapy stocks a range of CAM boots and can fit the right boot for your injury. We will also ensure that you know how to put on/take off your boot and are able to mobilise safely whilst wearing it (some injuries will allow you to walk on the boot, whilst others require you to be non-weight bearing).

If you require a CAM boot, please phone us on 8850 7770 to make an appointment for a fitting.

A recent study by Janssen et al. (2014) published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine has demonstrated that ankle braces are better than neuromuscular training in the prevention of recurrent ankle sprains.

Neuromuscular training is the completion of strengthening and balance exercises to restore ankle strength, balance, reaction time and function. This form of training is an essential component of rehabilitation following an ankle sprain.

The above mentioned study showed that 27% of people undertaking the neuromuscular training re-sprained their ankle within 12 months. This compared to 15% of people who re-sprained their ankle wearing a brace.

This study does not take into account the severity of any ankle sprain and whether a brace or neuromuscular training has any impact on the severity of any potential re-injury. The study is also non-specific when it comes to what sport or exercise the participants were undertaking, co-existing injuries, age or gender.

The study does highlight that there is a role for bracing in the prevention of recurrent ankle sprains.

Ankle braces are commonly available although there are numerous varieties on the market. Many factors need to be considered when selecting an ankle brace including the material it is made of (rigid vs elastic, does is have supportive stays down the side?), the sport played, location of injury and durability.

To find out whether neuromuscular training or ankle bracing would be beneficial to your injury, consult your sports physiotherapist.