Impact of Sprinting and Dribbling on Shoulder Joint and Pushrim Kinetics in Wheelchair Basketball Athletes.
Félix Chénier, Ilona Alberca, Dany H Gagnon and 1 others
PMID 36189044WHAT IT FOUND
Sprinting in a sports wheelchair places much higher loads on the shoulder than everyday propulsion.
Dribbling reduces some of these forces compared to sprinting, but the overall intensity of sports wheelchair use remains high. Training plans should account for this significant mechanical stress.
Key findings
01Shoulder loads during sports wheelchair sprinting are significantly higher than those recorded during standard everyday wheelchair propulsion.
02Dribbling reduces peak anterior and medial shoulder forces compared to sprinting, suggesting it may be less detrimental to the shoulder joint.
03The high shoulder loads observed are associated with risk factors for shoulder pathology identified in standard propulsion studies.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study included only ten participants, limiting the generalisability of the findings. The comparison to standard propulsion studies is indirect, as the populations, speeds, and equipment differed. The risk associations were based on studies of standard wheelchair users, which may not directly apply to the biomechanics of sports wheelchair athletes. The use of instrumented wheels added weight and inertia, potentially affecting the natural propulsion dynamics.
Declared interests
The authors declared no commercial or financial conflicts of interest. The study was funded by the Fonds de recherche du Québec.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the reduction in forces during dribbling as evidence that dribbling is safe or low-impact. The absolute loads remain much higher than everyday propulsion, and the reduction may be largely due to the slower speed achieved while dribbling rather than the task itself.