Positional Differences in Muscle-to-bone Ratio in National Football League Players

Int J Sports Med DOI: 10.1055/a-2089-8068The purpose of the present study was to examine the muscle-to-bone ratio (MBR) in National Football League (NFL) players. Three hundred and forty-six NFL players had their total body lean, fat and bone masses determined using dual X-ray absorptiometry and were compared to 228 age-matched, healthy male controls. Compared to the control group, NFL players had a significantly lower percent total body fat (17.90±6.92 vs. 22.93±8.96%, p=0.053), but significantly greater total fat mass (19.76±11.29 vs. 17.84±12.11 kg, p<0.0001), lean mass (84.55±8.75 vs. 55.3±11.79 kg, p<0.0001), bone mineral content (4.58±0.45 vs. 2.91±0.67 kg, p<0.0001), and bone mineral density (1.61±0.11 vs. 1.26±0.21 g/cm2, p<0.0001). NFL players had greater arm MBR (17.70±1.47 vs. 16.48±1.88, p<0.0001) than controls; however, both trunk (26.62±2.55 vs. 31.56±4.19, p<0.0001) and total (18.50±1.31 vs. 19.12±1.88, p<0.001) MBR were lower in NFL players. Leg MBR was not significantly different between NFL players and controls (16.72±1.53 vs. 16.85±1.87, p=0.34). When NFL players were categorized by their offensive or defensive position for comparison, no differences in total MBR were observed. However, leg MBR varied greatly among NFL pla...
Source: International Journal of Sports Medicine - Category: Sports Medicine Authors: Tags: Training & Testing Source Type: research