Aim. Little is known about the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and lower extremity alignment in female athletes. The purpose of this research was to examine the difference in lower extremity alignment between subjects with and without ACL reconstruction. Methods. Twenty ACL - injured females (age 24.9±5.75 yr, height 167.05±6.58 cm, weight 60.88±5.58 and athletic experience 7.70±4.41 yr) and 20 non-injured females (age 24.8±5.59 yr, height 166.15±6.39 cm, weight 60.20±6.08 and athletic experience 7.00 ±3.69 yr) matched by age, sport and involved limb participated in this study. Subjects were assessed for navicular drop, tibial torsion, Q angle, anteversion, knee recurvatum, hip internal and external rotation range of motion, true and apparent leg length, general joint laxity and dorsiflexion. Results. The results showed significant differences between pronation, tibial torsion, knee recurvatum and general joint laxity in the two groups (P=0.05). The significant relationships were found between ACL injury with general joint laxity, navicular drop, knee recurvatum and tibial torsion. Also general joint laxity, increased genu recurvatum and navicular drop were found to be statistically significant predictive of ACL injury history. Conclusion. Based on results of this retrospective study, identification of such biomechanical and anatomical factors which predispose the ACL to injury, is necessary.
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