Steamwheelers First Team in Arena Football To Require Knee Braces on Linemen

May 20, 2004 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Quad City Steamwheelers News Release


DAVENPORT, Iowa — At all levels of football, a major thing that comes up time after time is injuries. With as much contact as there is in tackle football, injuries occur on a frequent basis. The number of serious injuries in the game of Arena Football, where the field is shrunk in half, surrounded by sideboards, and made of artificial turf.

In an effort to curb knee related injuries, which is one of the highest categories of injury in football no matter what the playing surface is, the Quad City Steamwheelers have become the first Arena Football team in 18 seasons of league play, to require its linemen to wear knee braces starting this season, following a trend that has become popular for most NCAA teams.

The Steamwheelers linemen are required to wear the braces in practice and are strongly recommended to wear them on gamedays, however, it is not required as they begin to adjust to the new equipment.

The braces are the first step in what Steamwheelers Partner Owner and acting CFO Larry Bush describes as the beginning of taking many proactive steps in prevention, rather than rehabilitation.

"We looked at the guys and what type of injuries there were, and we said, how can we minimize injuries and take care of the players," Bush said. "The focus has been, in this league and others, on rehabilitation, and how quickly you can get the guys healthy; everything is post-accident. In talking with Jim Foster (Steamwheelers Managing Owner/Operator) and (Steamwheelers) coach Rich Ingold, we saw a need to work on the preventative side. The preventative side is a heck of a lot cheaper than the rehabilitation side."

The statistics support what Bush is saying. The cost for a set of knee braces runs anywhere from $600-$700. The cost of surgery and rehab on an ACL tear ranges anywhere from $20,000-$30,000 and the player is lost for a significant amount of time.

"If we can avert one of those types of surgeries (i.e. ACL or MCL tears), then we have paid for the braces, we'll have more money in our pocket at the end of the day for other operating expenses," Bush said.

Steamwheelers head athletic trainer Craig Wainwright is pleased with the move for more than one reason.

"It's not only beneficial to me, but the team, the players and coach, as he doesn't have to continually bring in new guys because of injuries," Wainwright said. "It's not guaranteed that it is going to help 100 percent, but even if it only helps 50 percent, that is much better than before."

In data obtained from the University of Iowa football program, knee injuries have dropped significantly. For just over ten years, the Hawkeyes football team has used preventative knee braces for offensive and defensive linemen.

Since 1993, the offensive linemen have worn custom-fit functional braces. In the six years before they began wearing the custom knee braces, 23 offensive linemen experienced MCL injuries, resulting in 300 missed days of practice and 56 missed games. Since 1993, there have been only two MCL or ACL injuries.

The special DonJoy brand of braces come from dj Orthopedics and have a four-point leverage system. According to the dj Ortho website, the brace combines to "successfully apply a net differential posterior force, or constant force to the tibia, which reduces the instability in the ACL."

The four points consist of two anterior points and two posterior points. The first point of leverage is the anterior thigh cuff. It acts as a point for rotating the femur anteriorly. The second point of leverage is the posterior calf cuff. It acts as a point for rotating the tibia posteriorly. The third point of leverage is a posterior thigh strap, which is applied while drawing the hinge bars posteriorly on the knee. Incorporating the fourth point generates the crucial opposing force. By tightening and affixing the anterior tibial strap, the hinge is drawn into proper position, and the tibia is rotated posteriorly.

DonJoy representative Eric Leichtman, who was in charge of fitting the Steamwheelers with the braces says that the DonJoy brace is already among numerous NCAA schools because they are designed to provide more all around support than other braces currently on the market.

"We do about 120 different NCAA football teams, including the Hawkeyes," Leichtman said. "You might end up with a little bruise, but that is much better than a ligament tear."

Bush is just happy that the team is willing to take steps to prevent the injuries.

"It's a win-win situation," Bush said. "We make the investment of the braces, the guys don't get hurt, they get to play more, and it protects their knees and injuries. We have more consistency with the players we have out on the field, rather than having coach go find replacements for injured players."



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