Welcome to the first episode of All things ACL! Today, I will be discussing the rise in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries, specifically in women’s sports. It is one of the four major knee ligaments, connecting the femur and the tibia bones, and stabilizes the knee by preventing excessive forward movements and excessive rotation.

According to the National Library of Medicine, female athletes tear their ACLs 2-8 times more than male athletes. In soccer alone, female athletes average 2 ACL injuries per 10 thousand games while male athletes average 1.7 ACL injuries per 10 thousand games.

Why are younger female athletes tearing their ACLs more? Unfortunately, there is not a definitive answer. The cause is multi-faceted, stemming from anatomical differences but also environmental differences. 

Cover art courtesy of Shiyo Ohashi. Music courtesy of Pixabay.