Context: Deficits in static postural control related to fatigue have been investigated previously, but there is little evidence to link fatigue to performance measures of dynamic postural control.
Objective: To investigate the effects of fatigue and gender on performance measures of the Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT).
Design: Mixed-model design.
Setting: Research laboratory.
Participants: 16 healthy young adults.
Intervention: Subjects performed the SEBT before and after 4 different fatiguing conditions.
Main outcome measures: The normalized reach distances and sagittal-plane kinematics of the knee and hip were recorded.
Results: Fatigue produced deficits in normalized reach distances and decreased knee flexion in all 3 reaching directions. Overall, women were able to reach farther than men while simultaneously demonstrating a greater amount of knee flexion.
Conclusions: Gender differences were observed during performance of the SEBT, with women demonstrating greater reach distances and knee flexion, and fatigue amplified these differences.