Unique method for analysing pressure distribution accross the knuckles during boxing
- Published
- Accepted
- Subject Areas
- Bioengineering, Kinesiology
- Keywords
- Pressure Film, Boxing, biomechanics, Hand, Wrist
- Copyright
- © 2015 Loosemore et al.
- Licence
- This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, reproduction and adaptation in any medium and for any purpose provided that it is properly attributed. For attribution, the original author(s), title, publication source (PeerJ PrePrints) and either DOI or URL of the article must be cited.
- Cite this article
- 2015. Unique method for analysing pressure distribution accross the knuckles during boxing. PeerJ PrePrints 3:e917v1 https://doi.org/10.7287/peerj.preprints.917v1
Abstract
Objectives: The hand is commonly injured in boxing but it is not clear why some athletes sustain hand injuries while others do not. It is possible that there are differences in the distribution of impact forces at the knuckle during punching between athletes and that certain distribution patterns may be predictive of increased injury risk. We developed a method of analysing the distribution of impact forces at the knuckle during punching using pressure film. Pressure film allows a calculation of the distribution and magnitude of pressure and force between any two surfaces that come into contact. Methods: Pressure film was inserted into the gloves of three male subjects prior to punching a stationary target. After each punch, the pressure film was removed and analysed to determine the distribution of the impact force during each punch across each of the four knuckles. Punches were repeated multiple times for each subject. The proportional distribution of the impact force during punches was compared between knuckles and within subjects. Results: The proportional distribution of the impact force exerted during punches was significantly different between knuckles and within subjects (p < 0.05). Knuckle 2 displayed the largest proportion of impact forces while knuckle 3 displayed the smallest proportion of impact forces. Conclusions: Pressure film inserted into boxing gloves can be used to analyse the distribution of impact forces across the knuckles during punching. Further work is needed to confirm the reliability and validity of the technique and establish whether there is an association between the impact forces at the individual knuckles and hand injury risk during boxing.
Author Comment
This is a submission to PeerJ for review.