A novel prophylactic parachute ankle brace CPAB

Abstract

Background: Comparing the effects of a self-designed and self-manufactured novel prophylactic ankle brace (Chinese parachute ankle brace, CPAB) and two ordinary ankle braces on the ankle joint during a half-squat parachute landing via biomechanical assessment.Methods: Twenty elite paratroopers were in four different conditions: no brace, elastic brace, semi-rigid brace, and CPAB. Each participant was instructed to jump off a platform with three different heights, 40 cm, 80 cm, and 120 cm, and land on the AMTI force plate in a half-squat posture. The vertical ground reaction forces (vGRF), joint angles, moments, powers, and works were calculated. After the experiment, every participant completed the questionnaires designed for this study.Result: Increasing the dropping height increased all of the parameters significantly (P<0.01), except for time to peak vGRF (T-PvGRF). Applying three braces can all slightly increase vGRF (P=0.237) and reduce T-PvGRF by 6-10 ms, as well as decrease the joint angles, velocities, and moments on the sagittal and coronal planes. Wearing CPAB and a semi-rigid brace more efficiently restricted dorsiflexion and inversion (P<0.05), and they both significantly reduced ankle work (t=5.107, P<0.01; t=3.331, P<0.01) and peak power (t=7.237, P<0.01; t=6.711, P<0.01) at 120 cm. The total scores from low-to-high were semi-rigid brace (19.20±2.99), elastic brace (21.91±3.25), and CPAB (23.37±3.08).Conclusion: The CPAB was more effective at restricting ankle joint motion on the coronal and sagittal planes than the other two prophylactic ankle braces. Therefore, the CPAB had the advantages of a novel appearance, high efficiency, and superior comfort, providing a reliable choice for parachute jumping and training in China.