Effects of training on postural stability in young basketball players

BACKGROUND: in basketball, balance ability is important to reduce non-contact injuries. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of training on balance. METHODS: thirty-two healthy male volunteers were recruited from amateur basketball teams. They were asked to perform the Balance Error Scoring System BESS test in order to measure the number of stability errors in six conditions. The test was performed at the beginning of the season (T0) and after 12 weeks (T1). In both cases the test was carried out before (pre-session) and after a training session (post-session). RESULTS: the comparison of the total BESS scores both pre- and post-session showed a statistically significant increase of stability errors at both T0 and T1 (T0: pre-session 8.6±6.1 errors, post-session 10.7±6.3 errors; t=-4.03; p=0.002) (T1: pre-session 7.2±3.8 errors, post-session 9.1±5.4 errors; t=-1.93; p=0.03). Between T0 and T1 we noticed a reduction of errors which reached a statistical significance during the pre-session time (t=2.75; p=0.0049). CONCLUSION: stability improved after 12 weeks of training, even for those conditions for which no specific training was done to improve, such as on the soft surface and feet aligned in a tandem stance.