Majority of NCAA Div. 1 Football Players at Specific Institute Show Patellar Tendon Blood Flow Post-Exercise

Patellar tendinopathy is a frequent overuse injury among collegiate athletes, especially in football players, due to the intense strain on the patellar tendon. Power Doppler Imaging (PDI) is an effective way to analyze blood flow (BF) within the tendon and correlates to patellar tendinopathy and pain. A healthy and normal tendon should have a score of 0 on the Arias scale. PURPOSE: This study aims to determine the number of players with increased BF and to determine if the BF at origin and insertion of the patella tendon is influenced by time on team or by position category (big: OL/DL, combo: TE/LB, skill: all other players). METHODS: Preexisting ultrasound images and data from 133 Div. 1 college football players (Ht 189 ± 6.1 cm; Wt 105 ± 19.8 kg) were analyzed for PDI intensity using a previously validated clinical scale of 0-5. The images included both proximal (patellar apex) and distal (patellar insertion) regions of the patellar tendon. RESULTS: A total number of 79 players had the presence of BF, the highest score=3. (number of players; 0 score: n= 54; 1 score: n = 46; 2 score: n = 23; 3 score: n= 10;) We performed Kruskal-Wallis tests to see whether PDI scores in both patella origin and insertion areas were dependent on the time in the program and position of the players. None of these groups differed significantly in PDI score from one another (all p < 0.05). At the patellar apex, when comparing true freshmen to all others, no significant difference in PDI values was found (p = 0.5869) At the patella insertion, using a Kruskal-Wallis test, there was a trend towards practical significance. However, there was still no statistical significance between true freshmen and other players (p = 0.182). CONCLUSION: 79 out of 133 players (59%) had BF either at the origin or insertion of patella tendon. Although there was no statistical significance within all these comparisons, we observed trends that may warrant further analysis. Players playing line positions (OL/DL) had higher mean PDI scores (0.5) than other players (0.33). This may have practical significance for players and clinicians. Future analysis and/or research directions may include analyzing the positions and time spent in the program together over an extended period.