The purpose of this study was to perform bilateral MRI examinations of the shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints of elite-level wheelchair basketball players to investigate the characteristics of MRI images of the upper extremity joints, and to examine whether there are any differences between the findings of wheelchair basketball players and those of general wheelchair users based on the previous literature. This information will be beneficial for elite wheelchair basketball players in extending their lifespan. If the characteristics of the injury can be determined, it will be possible to identify actions to avoid damage. Therefore, it is highly likely that an MRI of the upper extremity joints of wheelchair basketball players will show more complex abnormal findings. Recent studies have shown that wheelchair users have unique abnormal findings in the shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints on MRI. Therefore, maintaining the health of the upper extremities of wheelchair basketball players significantly impacts their careers and quality of life (QOL). In addition, they use a wheelchair in their daily lives, so their upper limbs are doubly stressed. Wheelchair basketball players perform complex wheelchair maneuvers quickly and repeatedly, as well as playing with the ball using their upper limbs. Wheelchair basketball is considered the most popular para-sport in the world. This study's insights can be useful for future solutions to extend players' careers. High-speed wheelchair operation was also considered a cause of severe triangular fibrocartilage complex injuries. We believe that the patients’ tendency to fall forward in the wheelchair hitting both hands on the ground, thereby injuring the triangular fibrocartilage complex and locking the lateral elbow, may be the cause of the characteristic findings on MRI. Severe damage to the right triangular fibrocartilage complex was also observed more frequently ( P < 0.05) in wheelchair basketball players. ResultsĮlite wheelchair basketball players had significantly more right-sided, left-sided and bilateral latero-posterior lesions, which are cysts found on the lateral-posterior corner of the capitulum of the humerus than did general wheelchair users ( P < 0.05). The significance threshold was set at P < 0.05. We used Fisher's exact test to determine whether the lesions diagnosed by MRI were specific to wheelchair basketball players.
We compared the number of lesions between the two groups.
Two radiologists interpreted the MRI images and diagnosed the diseases of each joint. The general wheelchair players were recruited from wheelchair users in their 20s and 30s who had no daily exercise habits and who agreed to the study objectives. The elite wheelchair players were athletes who underwent at our institution medical checkup of the candidates for the national team for the international women's tournament and who agreed to this research purpose. We scanned MRI images of the bilateral shoulders, elbows, and wrist joints of ten elite wheelchair basketball players and ten general wheelchair users. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of joint disorders in elite wheelchair basketball players using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Moreover, para-sport athletes are subjected to a dual load on their upper extremities from competition and daily life, making it even more critical to maintain upper extremity health. The health of wheelchair users’ upper limbs is directly related to their quality of life.
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