SHOULDER ROTATOR TORQUE AND WHEELCHAIR DEPENDENCE DIFFERENCES OF NATIONAL-WHEELCHAIR-BASKETBALL-ASSOCIATION PLAYERS

Objective: Shoulder rotator muscle imbalances can contribute to subacr omial impingement. The forces and movement patterns of wheelchair loco motion may contribute to these imbalances. This study attempted to det ermine whether National Wheelchair Basketball Association players of d iffering classifications had significant differences (p less than or e qual to .05) in concentric isokinetic peak shoulder rotator torque and torque ratios, and wheelchair locomotion dependence. Design: Fifty-se ven (class 1 = 12, class 2 = 24, class 3 = 21) of 117 total tournament participants (class 1 = 25, class 2 = 49, class 3 = 43) served as the convenience sample of volunteers for the survey portion, and 33 of th ese subjects (class 1 = 11, class 2 = 12, class 3 = 10) also entered t he isokinetic portion of this study. Setting: National wheelchair bask etball tournament. Results: Class 1 and 2 players had greater wheelcha ir dependence than class 3 players (p less than or equal to .05). Peak torque or torque ratios generally did not differ among player classif ications or with other populations. Class 1 players had weaker nondomi nant shoulder external rotator torque production at 60 degrees/sec (p less than or equal to .03) compared with other classes and at 180 degr ees/sec compared with class 3 players (p = .02), suggesting an inabili ty to develop the ''attenuation of dominance'' noted among other group s. Diminished torque-producing capacity at 60 degrees/sec related to g reater wheelchair dependence among class 1 players (p = .034). Conclus ions: Class 1 players failed to demonstrate the acquired shoulder exte rnal rotator torque symmetry evident among class 2 and 3 players (with specific weakness of the nondominant shoulder external rotators). Thi s torque symmetry difference was related to their greater dependence o n wheelchair locomotion. (C) 1997 by the American Congress of Rehabili tation Medicine and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Reha bilitation.