Q & A with Dr. Joanne Parsons on a different way to approach ACL injury research
Despite 30 years and 32,000 research studies, the rate of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries in girls remain high compared to boys. ACL injuries in the 5-14-year-old age group have the greatest rate of increase over the last 20 years. ACL injuries are usually approached in a biological way – with a focus on things like anatomy and hormone levels. Our research team is exploring how gendered environments may be a possible influence on ACL injuries because, from birth, there are very strong expectations and beliefs around appropriate activities and behaviours for girls versus boys.
What inspired your ACL research project?
Years of reading research about ACL injuries gradually made me frustrated by how girls were always reduced to their biology. Our posture is wrong; our muscles are weak; our monthly hormone changes are to blame. There was no focus on how larger issues could be affecting injury risk, despite constant examples of gender inequity in media and everyday life.
Tell us how the research team was formed?
Twitter! I somehow got following Dr. Stephanie Coen on Twitter, and she posted a link to an interview she did about how gender affects behaviour and attitudes in the weight room. It was the same type of thing I was thinking related to ACL injury, and so I sent her a message. Luckily, she messaged me back, which led to phone and zoom calls and a freely available paper in the British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJSM). Steph knew Dr. Sheree Bekker previously (from Twitter!) and got her involved in writing the paper along the way.
Why choose to focus on ACL from a gender/sex-based perspective?
We chose ACL as the focus because there is a striking difference in the injury rates between girls and boys, and yet gender has never been taken into consideration in any serious way.
What approach did you take and what did you discover?
We developed a new model that embeds gender into the study of ACL injury, prevention, and recovery. It’s a new way to think about ACL injury and has already been used by organizations such as Football Australia and FIFPRO (International Federation of Professional Footballers). We discovered that there is enthusiasm for approaching the ACL problem differently, as we have heard from countless people, and even athletes themselves, who say our work really resonates with them. We’ve done a blog and podcast for BJSM; a presentation for the Women in Sport and Exercise Academic Network in the UK; and been interviewed by an author writing a book about women in sports.
Where do we go from here in ACL injury research from a gender/sex-based perspective??
We are undertaking research projects to explore gendered environments in sport, to see how we can improve things. We recently pitched a research idea to the European Club Association, and we have projects in progress with high-performance sport in England and Australia. We are excited to pursue all opportunities that improve the ACL injury situation for girls and women*.
*Inclusive of gender-expansive people
Lessons Learned
Don’t give up. Finding colleagues that share your vision and values can be difficult. Before finding Dr. Coen and Dr. Bekker, I pitched my gender/ACL injury ideas to a few other researchers and was dismissed. But I kept the idea alive until the right people came along, and luckily, it has worked out better than I could have imagined.
About the Author
Dr. Joanne Parsons is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at the University of Manitoba. The primary goal of her research is to foster the physical and emotional health of girls and women through engagement in resistance training. She collaborates with local schools on projects which explore the barriers and facilitators to participation, as well as the effect of innovative exercise programs which prioritize equity and inclusion on the health of girls and young women. She also studies the influence that resistance training can have on injury risk and athletic performance in young female athletes. Her background as an orthopedic physiotherapist result in a clinical approach to research, with an emphasis on practical application to improve the health and well-being of young people quickly and meaningfully.