# Muscle Synergy During Cutting Movements in Athletes with a History of Groin Pain

## TL;DR

Athletes with a history of groin pain show altered muscle coordination during cutting movements, particularly in trunk and core muscles.

## Contribution

The study identifies disrupted neuromuscular coordination in athletes with groin pain using muscle synergy analysis.

## Key findings

- Athletes with groin pain showed increased latissimus dorsi and erector spinae contributions during landing.
- External oblique contributions decreased significantly in the acceleration phase for athletes with groin pain.
- Altered muscle coordination suggests disrupted neuromuscular patterns in athletes with a history of groin pain.

## Abstract

This study examined muscle coordination during cutting movements in athletes with a history of groin pain. A total of 15 athletes who had experienced groin pain in the past two years (GP) and 14 healthy controls (CON) participated. Electromyography (EMG) and ground reaction force (GRF) data were collected, and EMG was analyzed using non-negative matrix factorization to extract muscle synergies. Three synergies were identified in both groups: Synergy 1 (landing), Synergy 2 (deceleration), and Synergy 3 (acceleration). No group differences were observed in GRF. However, compared with the CON, the GP demonstrated a 58.1% greater contribution of the latissimus dorsi and a 31.5% greater contribution of the erector spinae (SES) in Synergy 1, suggesting excessive trunk involvement during landing. In Synergy 2, SES contribution was 97.0% lower in the GP. In Synergy 3, the external oblique contribution decreased by 118.4%, while rectus abdominis contribution increased by 54.3%. These muscles are critical for pelvic stability, and their altered contributions indicate disrupted neuromuscular coordination in athletes with GP.