The Neuromuscular Effects of the Copenhagen Adductor Exercise: A Systematic Review.

Content Provider	Europe PMC
Author	Schaber, Morgan Guiser, Zachary Brauer, Logan Jackson, Rebecca Banyasz, John Miletti, Ryan Hassen-Miller, Amy
Abstract	BackgroundGroin strains are one of the most common time-loss injuries in athletes. The Copenhagen Adductor Exercise (CAE) eccentrically strengthens the adductors and may function to prevent adductor strains, similar to the eccentric mechanism in which the Nordic Hamstrings exercise acts to prevent hamstring strains.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to systematically review the literature on the CAE and its effects on adductor muscle strength and muscle activity in athletes.Study DesignSystematic ReviewMethodsA systematic search of the literature was performed in the following databases: Pubmed; Medline (EBSCO); Sportdiscus; Scopus; Web of Science; CINAHL; Proquest; Cochrane Library; Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro). Inclusion criteria consisted of 1) implements CAE, 2) includes athletes of any age participating in at least one sport, 3) study type is a cohort study or randomized control trial. Studies were excluded if they were not written in English or did not measure strength as an outcome. Data were extracted on eccentric hip adductor strength (EHAD), eccentric hip abductor strength (EHAB), EHAD:EHAB ratio, and electromyography (EMG) activity of the adductor muscles. Quality assessment was performed on all included studies using Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies.ResultsFive articles were identified for inclusion, four of which received a strong rating, and one a moderate rating on the Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies. The CAE significantly increased EHAD in four of the four studies that examined it; significantly increased EHAB and EHAD:EHAB in three of the three studies that examined them, and increased the EMG activity of the adductors in the dominant leg 108%.ConclusionOverall, the CAE increases EHAD, EHAB, EHAD:EHAB, and EMG activity in the hip adductors in male soccer players. The increase in strength may reduce adductor muscle injuries, although more research needs to be done in this area to identify a clear relationship between the CAE and groin injury prevention.Level of Evidence1b
Related Links	https://europepmc.org/backend/ptpmcrender.fcgi?accid=PMC8486394&blobtype=pdf
Journal	International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy [Int J Sports Phys Ther]
Volume Number	16
DOI	10.26603/001c.27975
PubMed Central reference number	PMC8486394
Issue Number	5
PubMed reference number	34631242
e-ISSN	21592896
Language	English
Publisher	NASMI
Publisher Date	2021-10-01
Access Restriction	Open
Rights License	This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License (4.0) which permits non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. If you remix, transform, or build upon this work, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original.
Subject Keyword	adductor injuries adductor strength copenhagen adductor exercise groin strain
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Rehabilitation Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation Orthopedics and Sports Medicine