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Elite swimmers with and without unilateral shoulder pain: mechanical hyperalgesia and active/latent muscle trigger points in neck–shoulder muscles
Author(s) -
HidalgoLozano A.,
FernándezdelasPeñas C.,
CalderónSoto C.,
DomingoCamara A.,
Madeleine P.,
ArroyoMorales M.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of medicine and science in sports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.575
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1600-0838
pISSN - 0905-7188
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0838.2011.01331.x
Subject(s) - medicine , sternocleidomastoid muscle , hyperalgesia , referred pain , physical therapy , physical medicine and rehabilitation , nociception , surgery , receptor
Our aim was to investigate the presence of mechanical hypersensitivity and active trigger points (TrPs) in the neck–shoulder muscles in elite swimmers with/without unilateral shoulder pain. Seventeen elite swimmers with shoulder pain; 18 swimmers without shoulder pain; and 15 elite athletes matched controls were recruited. Pressure pain thresholds (PPT) were assessed over the levator scapulae, sternocleidomastoid, upper trapezius, infraspinatus, scalene, subscapularis and tibialis anterior muscles. TrPs in the levator scapulae, upper trapezius, infraspinatus, scalene, sternocleidomastoid and subscapularis muscles were also explored. Swimmers with shoulder pain showed significant lower PPT in all muscles compared with controls ( P <0.01). No differences in PPT were found between swimmers with and without shoulder pain, underlining widespread mechanical hypersensitivity. The mean number of TrPs for elite swimmer with and without shoulder pain was, respectively, 4.7 ± 1 (2.1 ± 1.5 active; 2.6 ± 1.4 latent) and 4.7 ± 1.3 (1.3 ± 1.3 active; 3.4 ± 1.5 latent), whereas healthy athletes only showed latent TrPs (2.4 ± 1.2). Elite swimmers with shoulder pain showed higher number of active TrPs than swimmers without pain, whereas it was the opposite for the number of latent muscle TrP ( P <0.05). The reported mechanical hypersensitivity suggests that active TrPs play a role in the development of shoulder pain in elite swimmers.