Joint laxity in selected athletic populations.

Joint laxity was established in 96 subjects from six different athletic groups. Three different methods of measurement were applied to each subject: a hyperextensometer method, a generalized joint laxity method, and a global index method. The hyperextensometer detected two significant differences (P less than 0.01) between paired athletic groups using the Bonferroni t-statistic. The generalized joint laxity method detected four significant differences between the pairs, whereas the global index method detected seven significant differences. Thus the commonly used methods of measuring joint laxity are failing to detect statistically significant distinctions observed by using a more complicated method.