The Correlation Between the Strength of the Shoulder and Trunk Muscular Systems in Elite Adolescent Water Polo Athletes

Spyridon Sioutis; Konstantinos Zygogiannis; Maria-Eleni Papakonstantinou; Ioannis Zafeiris; Fotini Soucacos; Pavlos Altsitzioglou; Apostolis Skouras; Dimitrios Karamintzas; Charilaos Tsolakis; Panagiotis Koulouvaris

doi:10.7759/cureus.29775

The Correlation Between the Strength of the Shoulder and Trunk Muscular Systems in Elite Adolescent Water Polo Athletes

Cureus. 2022 Sep 30;14(9):e29775. doi: 10.7759/cureus.29775. eCollection 2022 Sep.

Affiliations

¹ First Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Attikon University Hospital, Athens, GRC.
² Department of Trauma and Orthopaedics, Laiko General Hospital, Athens, GRC.
³ Third Department of Paediatrics, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, GRC.

Abstract

Introduction Water polo is a competitive team sport played in the water between two teams of seven players each. Water polo players must have swimming speed, strong abdominal and back muscles, and strong shoulder muscles to cope with this sport's special conditions. In this study, we investigate the possible association of shoulder and trunk muscle systems in adolescent water polo athletes of high demands. Materials and methods The research included 42 water polo players aged 14-16, who train regularly for at least five years, six times a week, and participate in national championships and national teams. The athletes were evaluated on the strength and torque of these muscular systems using the isokinetic dynamometer Biodex System 4 Pro (Biodex Medical Systems, Inc, Shirley, NY). The correlation of the results was done using the statistical package SPSS 21. Results The correlations revealed statistically significant differences in trunk extension in combination with the shoulder external/internal rotation ratio. Also, most of the correlations occurred between the trunk and non-dominant limb of the athletes and, more often, in the female athletes. Furthermore, for the hand grip, the male athletes showed a greater difference in strength between the dominant and the non-dominant member than female athletes. Finally, the evaluation of the trunk extension/flexion ratio and external/internal rotation ratio for the shoulder joint showed that many athletes are outside the normal range and need targeted strengthening. Conclusion The negative correlation coefficient between trunk extension/flexion and shoulder external/internal rotation indicates that the trunk extension mechanism helps for better internal rotation of the shoulder. Therefore, water polo players should focus on the training of the stretching mechanism of the trunk and also give weight to achieving a balance between the competing muscular systems of the trunk and the shoulder. Thus, athletes can maximize their skills and, at the same time, protect themselves from injuries.

Keywords: peak torque; shoulder strength; trunk strength; water polo; youth sports.