Introduction:

Non-contact anterior cruciate ligament injuries have a higher incidence in adolescent female athletes. The characteristics of basketball (jumping and landing), together with women's biomechanical and hormonal characteristics (greater valgus at the knees, joint laxity, and menstrual cycle), make us find ourselves before a population sector of special interest to implement neuromuscular prevention programs. The objective of this study has been a literature review to propose neuromuscular prevention programs for non-contact anterior cruciate ligament injuries in female basketball players.

Material and method:

The search was conducted in the PubMed, SportDiscus, and PEDro databases between December 2019 and January 2020. The keywords "anterior cruciate ligament," "neuromuscular training," "injury rates," "basketball," and "women" were used as search criteria.

Results:

20 articles selected according to the inclusion criteria were analyzed; these studies provided information on risk factors and prevention programs for common anterior ligament injuries in healthy women and athletes. The information obtained was classified according to the preventive strategy provided.

Conclusions:

A neuromuscular prevention program for non-contact anterior cruciate ligament injuries in female basketball players should be based on four main aspects: lower limb strength training, plyometrics, feedback on the landing, and central trunk work.