Angle-Specific Isokinetic Shoulder Rotational Strength Can be Reliably Assessed in Collision and Contact Athletes

Area of Science:

• Sports Medicine
• Biomechanics
• Orthopedics

Background:

• Shoulder rotational strength is crucial for contact and collision athletes.
• Understanding this strength can aid in injury prevention and return-to-sport protocols.

Purpose of the Study:

• Determine test-retest reliability of angle-specific rotational torque measurements.
• Establish a normative profile of shoulder rotational strength.
• Examine interlimb asymmetries in shoulder rotational strength.

Main Methods:

• Recruited uninjured contact and collision athletes for reliability and normative studies.
• Utilized intraclass correlation coefficients for reliability analysis.
• Employed 2-way repeated-measures ANOVA to assess interlimb asymmetries.

Main Results:

• Good to excellent interday reliability (0.78-0.90) for dominant side isokinetic strength.
• Moderate to good reliability (0.63-0.86) for nondominant side isokinetic strength.
• Established reliable angle-specific torque measurements in various rotational positions.

Conclusions:

• Clinically relevant, angle-specific shoulder rotational torque can be reliably measured.
• A normative profile for shoulder rotational strength in athletes has been developed.
• This profile serves as a reference for assessing shoulder strength and potential injury risk.