Kinematic profiling of the shoulder and its relationship with pain in a population of Nigerian volleyball players

Objectives: Volleyball players are at high risk of shoulder injury due to faulty shoulder kinematics which results in subsequent shoulder pain.There is a dearth of information on kinematic profiling of the shoulder in Volleyball players in Nigeria. This study investigated the shoulder kinematics and the relationship with shoulder pain in volleyball players in Lagos, Nigeria.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional analytical survey which involved 81 professional and amateur Volleyball players who had been playing actively for at least a year. Goniometry measurements for shoulder flexion, extension, and internal rotation were obtained using a standard goniometer. Forward Shoulder Posture (FSP) and scapular static position were evaluated for each participant with the upper extremity abducted to 0°, 45°, and 90° in the coronal plane using the Lateral Scapular Slide Test (LSST). All data were analyzed using descriptive statistics of mean and standard deviation, frequency and percentage. Student’s T-test was used to determine the differences in kinematics between the dominant and non- dominant shoulder.

Results: The prevalence of pain in the dominant shoulder was 49.2%. There were significant differences in the kinematic profiles between the dominant and non-dominant sides (p<0.01) which were not significantly associated with shoulder pain (p>0.05)

Conclusion: There was significant asymmetry in shoulder kinematics of volleyball players which was not significantly related to shoulder pain. Volleyball players will, however, benefit from preventative programs to forestall future shoulder injury.