Ligamentous instability, ankle muscle weakness, foot-ankle alignment,
and generalized joint laxity may be predisposing factors for ankle lig
ament injuries. The purpose of this study was to examine the reliabili
ty of these risk factors before and after the season in healthy indivi
duals and to determine if any significant differences developed during
the athletic season (range, 12 to 16 weeks). Twenty-one healthy colle
ge-aged athletes were tested for generalized joint laxity, anatomic al
ignment of the foot and ankle, ligamentous stability, and isokinetic s
trength of the ankle muscles, This study showed that generalized joint
laxity, ankle ligamentous stability, and ankle strength measurements
demonstrated high correlation coefficients (r > 0.75). The high correl
ation coefficients suggested reliable measures. Some of the range of m
otion measurements had lower correlation coefficients, which suggested
more variability in these measurements. After establishing the reliab
ility in 24 of the 28 measurements with standardized methods, further
work is underway to evaluate the role of these factors in inversion an
kle sprains.