COMPARISON OF SHOULDER INJURY IN COLLEGIATE-LEVEL AND MASTERS-LEVEL SWIMMERS

The need to investigate shoulder injury in swimmers other than the you ng and elite is evident, as all ages and levels are represented in the 100 million Americans who classify themselves as swimmers. To investi gate the differences between young, highly competitive collegiate swim mers and older, less elite swimmers, a survey questionnaire was distri buted to 100 collegiate and 100 master's swim teams. Questions regardi ng swimming routines, performance standards, and several possible pred isposing factors associated with ''swimmer's shoulder,'' as implicated in the literature, were investigated. As expected, the results reveal ed that the collegiate group swam the higher yardage, with considerabl y faster times in both the 50- and the 1,000-yd freestyle, and more th an double the number of workouts per week. However, the collegiate and master's group reported similar percentages, 47 and 48%, respectively , experiencing shoulder pain lasting 3 weeks or more, despite the less er distances and intensities associated with the latter group. Chi-squ are analysis revealed no association between shoulder pain and perceiv ed level of flexibility, hand paddle usage, or breathing side for eith er group. However, over 50% of the swimmers with shoulder pain in both groups perceived that increased intensities and/or distance provoked shoulder pain, indicating that fatigue may be the issue to avoid and o n which to focus. Strengthening the muscles of the shoulder, specifica lly those shown to have a propensity to fatigue, provides a strong def ense against injury, as fatigue of the shoulder muscles may be the ini tial antecedent to swimmer's shoulder. These results give the swimmer, coach, and medical practitioner feedback to consider for a swimmer of any age or level.