ACL stands for Anterior Cruciate Ligament and it links the femur (large bone in upper leg) to the tibia (bones in lower leg) by running crosswise inside the center of the knee joint. The ACL is one of four ligaments that help stabilize knee movement.
As recently reported on WXYZ news, these types of injuries are on the rise in youth girls (as much as eight times more than males). They tend to be caused by pivoting movements and landing from a jump.
According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control), "nearly 30,000 girls age 19 and younger suffered ACL injuries that required surgical repair in 2006." It's felt that girls are not equipped for the vigorous training that is often expected of them at this age because their bodies are building fat while boys are building muscle. This is due to the nature of their hormones; testosterone vs. estrogen. Girls bodies are building fat stores around the crucial, growing reproductive organs and her ligaments become more relaxed and therefore, more susceptible to injury.
It's also felt that a girl's wider pelvic structure causes a steeper angle on the connecting ligaments in this area.
In an article by ESPN, there are certain exercises that can keep the ACL strong and healthy such as walking lunges & toe raises. In a nut shell, girl athletes and coaches need to educate themselves on this issue to help prevent ACL tears. Girls can enjoy sports but their type of preventative exercises need to be different than boys; focused on the females body structure and hormones.
Proper fluid balance is also crucial considering our bodies are made-up of mostly water and needs to be replaced promptly when training for sports.
There are better treatments available now for ACL tears instead of surgery, but the best treatment is to prevent the injury in the first place.
Research on ACL injuries continues and we are seeing more education in school athletic programs.
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