Normalization considerations for using the unilateral seated shot put test in rehabilitation

Area of Science:

• Biomechanics
• Sports Medicine
• Rehabilitation Science

Background:

• The unilateral seated shot put test aids upper extremity rehabilitation decision-making.
• Normalization is crucial for comparing patient results across different individuals.
• The impact of body size and limb dominance normalization methods remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of various normalization techniques on the unilateral seated shot put test.
• To determine the optimal method for normalizing test results for clinical application.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study involving 125 collegiate athletes (63 males).
• Collected anthropometric data (height, body mass, arm length) and throwing distances.
• Applied ratio scaling and allometric scaling (exponents 0.67 and derived 0.35) for body size normalization.
• Utilized limb symmetry index for dominance-based normalization.
• Examined sex differences in performance.

Main Results:

• Allometric scaling with an exponent of 0.35 effectively removed the correlation with body mass.
• The mean limb symmetry index was higher than 100% in both males (108.7%) and females (104.4%).
• Normalized test results were consistently higher for males across all methods.

Conclusions:

• Allometric scaling using an exponent of 0.35 is recommended for the unilateral seated shot put test.
• Clinicians should acknowledge a 5-10% performance advantage for the dominant limb.
• Establish sex-specific performance benchmarks for accurate interpretation.