Glenohumeral Joint Range of Motion in Crossminton Players

Abstract

Crossminton is a sport that combines elements of squash, badminton and tennis, creating a new sport, which is currently being played all over the world. The aim of our study was to identify and compare the bilateral differences in the internal and external rotation of the glenohumeral joint of crossminton players. The subject of our study were 13 crossminton players from Slovak Republic (25.1±9.3 years; 172.8±9.1 cm; 71.8±16.1 kg). The range of motion of internal (IR-ROM) and external rotation (ER-ROM) of the glenohumeral joint was measured bilaterally using a standard two-arm goniometer. Bilateral comparison, decimal and sport age pairwise comparisons were carried using the T-test for independent samples. Results point to the occurrence of glenohumeral joint adaptation. Given the bilateral differences, the dominant shoulder has lower IR-ROM (p < 0.05) and higher ER-ROM (p < 0.05) than the non-dominant shoulder. GIRD (IR difference > 13 °) was observed in 4 players. The decimal age of the players did not have a significant impact on the rotation values of the glenohumeral joint. Only IR-ROM of the dominant upper limb was lower with the growing sport age of the players (p < 0.05). Given the fact that adaptations in ROM of glenohumeral joint promote an increased injury risk, the present study reveals the relevance of monitoring and finding differences between upper limbs in crossminton players.