Genu varum deformity may increase postural sway and falling risk

Introduction: Any disturbance in balance control procedures may increase the risk of injury during sportactivities. Knee deformities such as genu valgum and genu varum may perturb the line of gravity passingthe lower limb joints and so disturb dynamic and static balance indices. This study was designed toinvestigate the effects of genu valgum and genu varum deformity on the static and dynamic balance indices.Material and Methods: A total of 90 non-athletic female university students were assigned in one of thethree experimental groups; normal knee (n=30), genu varum (n=30) and genu valgum (n=30), according totheir knee conditions. Static and dynamic overall stability index (OSI), anterior-posterior stability index(APSI), medial-lateral stability index (MLSI) and falling risk were evaluated three times by Biodex balancesystem, and the average of each index were recorded.Results: No significant difference was seen between groups in term of dynamic and static OSI and APSI,while significant lower stability was found in the genu varum group compared to normal groups in term ofdynamic and static MLSI (p<0.05). A significant increased in falling risk was also seen in genu varumgroup, compared to the normal group (p<0.05).Conclusion: The results showed that mechanical disturbance due to the genu varum deformity mayperturb the medial-lateral balance indices in both static and dynamic situations. This may indicate that genuvarum deformity may increase the normal postural sway in the medial lateral direction and increase fallingrisk as well.