Changes in Normalized Shoulder Strength and Self-Perceived Function in Healthy Division One Baseball Players Over the Course of a Competitive Season

Background Deficits in shoulder strength have been previously established as a risk factor associated with the development of time-loss shoulder and elbow injuries. However, limited data exists on normative shoulder strength changes in collegiate baseball athletes over the course of a competitive season. Hypothesis/Purpose: There were two purposes of this study: 1) to assess changes in shoulder strength over a competitive season, and 2) to assess self-perceived shoulder and elbow function changes over the course of a competitive season in healthy Division I collegiate baseball players. It was hypothesized that shoulder strength would differ over a competitive season with no observed differences in Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic (KJOC) scores over time in healthy baseball athletes. Study Design Prospective cohort Methods Forty-nine uninjured NCAA baseball athletes were assessed for bilateral isometric shoulder strength (external [ER] and internal [IR] rotation and scaption [SCAP]) via handheld dynamometry at four time points: fall physicals, preseason, mid-season, and postseason. Additionally, athletes completed the KJOC score at each testing session. A 2x4 repeated measures multivariate analysis of variances was conducted to determine the effect of playing position and time on normalized shoulder strength and KJOC scores. Results There was a main effect of time on isometric shoulder strength (p Conclusion Uninjured collegiate baseball players demonstrated changes in shoulder strength over time that exceeded minimal detectable change scores over the course of a competitive season for both limbs. The results of the present study offers shoulder strength values using a reliable and reproducible normalization method to evaluate shoulder strength in collegiate baseball athletes. Level of Evidence III