Athletes are injury-prone, and not just when they're trying to generate sympathy from referees during the World Cup. But now, thanks to the Michael W. Krzyzewski Human Performance Laboratory, every athlete-from the casual weekend warriors to the stars of the men's basketball team-will have a new helping hand when injury strikes.
The "K Lab" draws on resources from several different areas of the Medical Center to improve athletes' training and health with a particular emphasis on preventing injuries rather than treating them. About 25 physicians work in the laboratory, including orthopedic surgeons, biomechanical engineers and physical therapists.
Although the Medical Center supports the physicians and trainers who work in the lab, a grant of about $2 million from the Nike Corporation pays for much of the equipment in the laboratory, said Dr. Jim Urbaniak, chief of orthopedic surgery and chair of The K Lab Research Board.
The facility has been operational for the past two years, but construction delays in the Finch-Yeager building, which houses the lab and is located behind Wallace Wade Stadium, postponed its transition into an official entity until its ceremonial opening June 26.
In remarks at the lab's opening, President Nan Keohane pointed out that the facility is more than a high-tech doctor's office for varsity athletes. It encompasses several University values: research, athletics and community involvement.
"I look forward to the ways that this will benefit the ordinary folks," she said.
Only about 20 percent of patients at the clinic play for University teams, Urbaniak explained. Other athletes at the clinic are high school students or casual amateurs from around the state.
"What's most important is what's good for sports," said Dave Mingey, Nike's manager of U.S. corporate communications. "We're looking for ways to... help people at all levels from grass-roots to professional."
Nike's contribution, which began in 1996, is to be parceled out in equal chunks over a four-year period. None of Nike's characteristic swooshes festoon the walls; the sports apparel company's contribution is purely to aid research, Mingey said. Urbaniak added that Nike may not prevent any of the lab's research from going to publication.
Men's basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski's relationship with Nike was instrumental in setting up the lab, Urbaniak said. Krzyzewski, Urbaniak continued, has also expressed interest in human performance, injury prevention and the general well-being of the athlete.
"To have something named after you is indeed an honor," Krzyzewski said at the opening ceremony. "For it to be a living and breathing entity is an even greater honor." Krzyzewski stressed, however, that his contribution to the lab is minimal; others such as Urbaniak have been the lab's visionaries, he said.
No formalized system has been developed to teach the lab's findings to the casual athlete, but the facility's organizers hope to make this a reality in the future. To assist the University athlete, however, the lab plans to have an annual symposium at which it will teach its findings to trainers who will take the new knowledge to athletes. "If we felt we have definite evidence that injuries would be prevented, we would teach this," Urbaniak said.
During the past year, lab members have already demonstrated the utility of their findings. One such study focused on the common problem of athletes injuring the anterior cruciate ligament, the fibrous connective tissue that criss-crosses the back of the knee. The ACL often tears when athletes perform maneuvers such as shooting a basketball and then jumping to grab a rebound, said research analyst Scott Colby.
The ACL is protected by the hamstring at the back of the thigh, and violent movements of the quadriceps muscle on the front of the thigh can tear it. When an athlete bends the knee to bring her calf closer to her thigh, the hamstring provides greater protection for the ACL and the quadriceps places it under less stress, Colby said.
Using retro-reflective tape, researchers measured the angle between the quad and calf when different athletes performed shooting and rebounding maneuvers. The research group found that men, who tear their ACLs less frequently than women, also bend their knees more and therefore use their quads less than their female counterparts, Colby concluded. As a result of this research, Colby continued, athletic trainers will encourage athletes to bend their knees when performing such maneuvers, hopefully lessening the frequency of ACL injuries.
Anthony Seaber, director of the facility, declined to comment.
Tim Millington contributed to this story.
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