Shoulder pain: A comparison of wheelchair basketball players with trunk control and without trunk control

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare shoulder pain between wheelchair basketball players with trunk control and wheelchair basketball players without trunk control. Players were evaluated according the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF) classification system. The study group comprised 60 wheelchair basketball players, who were rated according to the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation classification system. Players were divided into two groups according to their trunk control. Study participants completed an anonymous survey that included demographic data, medical history data, and the Wheelchair User's Shoulder Pain Index (WUSPI). There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups based on the number of years of wheelchair use, active sport years, weekly working hours, and weekly training hours (p> 0.05). Statistically significant differences were found between wheelchair basketball players with trunk control and wheelchair basketball players with trunk control with respect to the duration of their disability, the daily number of transfers made to wheelchair, and Performance Corrected Wheelchair User's Shoulder Pain Index (PC-WUSPI) score (p< 0.05). The total PC-WUSPI score was higher among players without trunk control (p< 0.05). Study findings suggest that the shoulder pain of wheelchair basketball players must be analyzed. Trunk stabilization is the key factor affecting the function of the shoulder and is of primary importance for appropriate loading of the shoulder joint's many forms of articulation.