Acromio-humeral distance in athletes’ shoulders

Mackenzie, TA; Herrington, LC; Horsley, I; Cools, A

Abstract

Preservation of the acromio-humeral distance in athletes is important to prevent
impingement of the rotator cuff tendons in the subacromial space. It is hypothesised
that during arm abduction, the acromio-humeral distance is maintained in the athletic
population, manifesting in a smaller percentage reduction of this measure when
compared with non-athletes. This study investigates whether differences exist in
percentage reduction of this space during arm abduction when comparing athletes
and non-athletes. Thirty male controls and 93 sportsmen met the inclusion criteria.
Thirty female controls and 30 sportswomen met the inclusion criteria. Measurements
of acromio-humeral distance in the coronal plane were taken with ultrasound in
two arm positions: one, shoulder neutral; and two, 60° of active abduction. Results
show a greater percentage reduction in acromio-humeral distance in male controls
compared with sportsmen when the arm is abducted to 60°, this does not achieve
significance in the dominant shoulder (Δ=0.80% STD 2.60%, p=0.77) but is significant
in the non-dominant shoulder (Δ=5.90% STD 2.50%, p = 0.02).A greater percentage
reduction in acromio-humeral is present in female controls compared with sportswomen
(Δ=10.76% STD 0.06%, p=0.01 dominant shoulder, Δ=15.54% STD 0.07%, p=0.02
non-dominant shoulder). The finding that elite athletes of both genders have a smaller
percentage reduction in acromio-humeral distance during 60° arm abduction when
compared with non-sporting controls may indicate an adaptive response in order to
maintain acromio-humeral distance in the shoulder of athletes.

Citation

Mackenzie, T., Herrington, L., Horsley, I., & Cools, A. (2015). Acromio-humeral distance in athletes’ shoulders. Annals of sports medicine and research, 2(7), 1042

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 10, 2015
• Publication Date: Aug 12, 2015
• Deposit Date: Dec 21, 2015
• Journal: Annals of Sports Medicine and Research
• Volume: 2
• Issue: 7
• Pages: 1042
• Publisher URL: http://www.jscimedcentral.com/SportsMedicine/sportsmedicine-2-1042.pdf
• Related Public URLs: http://www.jscimedcentral.com/SportsMedicine/