• Amy Fraley Hand, Siqi Hong, Craig E Pfeifer, David F Stodden, Kasee H Haugen, Bryan M Terlizzi, T Cade Abrams, Kimbo Yee, Daniel Spaulding, Mason Dubina, Christopher R Bellon, George L Grieve, Christopher J Sole, and Ryan S Sacko.
• Department of Exercise Science, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.
• Mil Med. 2024 Jan 23; 189 (1-2): e242e249e242-e249.

IntroductionSecular trend of increasing musculoskeletal injuries (MSKIs) across all branches of the U.S. Military is a critical limiting factor in the effective and efficient process of preparing military personnel for combat. The need to evaluate functional capacity beyond current physical fitness test (PFT) standards is the key in understanding an individual's risk of noncombat-related injury. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the relationship between Functional Movement ScreenTM (FMS) scores, incidence of musculoskeletal injuries, and standardized PFT scores among freshman Cadets during their first 10 weeks of enrollment at a senior military college.Materials And MethodsEighty-two participants (72 male and 10 female participants; mage: 18.2 years) completed the FMS, an institution-specific PFT (2-min maximum pushups, 2-min maximum abdominal crunches, and 1.5 mile timed run), and an Incidence of Injury and Incidence of Pain Questionnaire. Independent t-tests, Spearman's rank correlation coefficients logistic regression analysis, and Receiver Operator Curves were performed to evaluate relationships between the study variables.ResultsFMS composite and PFT sex-normed total scores were higher in females (16.4, 236.1) than in males (15.0, 204.9). Ninety percent of all females reported injury or pain during the 10-week survey period compared to 48% of males.ConclusionsNo significant difference between FMS scores and injury and pain was found within both sex groups. Therefore, use of the composite FMS score as an indicator for risk of injury or to predetermine PFT performance is not recommended for this study's population. The rate of incidence of injury or pain in Cadets during a 10-week enrolment period is high. Females outperformed males in the FMS and PFT and reported higher rates of injury and pain. The utility of the FMS may be limited when substantially scaled for implementation across entire military populations. Future research should evaluate performance associations of the FMS with Army Combat Fitness Test components in a population of equally distributed sex and race.© The Association of Military Surgeons of the United States 2023. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

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