Logo image
Back
Wrist pain in gymnasts: Efficacy of a wrist brace to decrease wrist pain while performing gymnastics
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Wrist pain in gymnasts: Efficacy of a wrist brace to decrease wrist pain while performing gymnastics

Beverley Trevithick, Rebecca Mellifont and Mark Sayers
Journal of Hand Therapy, Vol.33(3), pp.354-360
2020
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jht.2019.03.002
Appears in  UniSC Diversity and Inclusion Research Collection
url
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jht.2019.03.002View
Published Version

Abstract

Radial physis Adolescent Wrist Gymnast Wrist brace Ground reaction forces UniSC Diversity Area - Life Stages
Study Design: This was a clinical trial of prospective cohort.Introduction:Wrist pain in gymnasts is a global phenomenon. Compression forces acting on wrists while performing gymnastics is a predisposing factor in the development of wrist pain and consequential injury of the distal radial physis in skeletally immature gymnasts. One approach to mitigate these forces is wrist bracing; however, studies on the efficacy of wrist braces to reduce wrist pain experienced by gymnasts are limited. Purpose of the Study: The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of an innovative design of a wrist brace to decrease gymnasts' wrist pain while performing gymnastics.Methods:A wrist brace was designed and trialled over 3 weeks by 48 male gymnasts (aged 8-22 years,levels 4-7) with wrist pain. Wrist pain was recorded on a visual analog scale of 1 to 10 before and after trial.Data analysis was performed using SPSS-22 (IBM Inc). Pairedt-tests were performed to compare variables before and after trial, with effect size analyses used to quantify the relative magnitude of any differences. Results: Pairedt-tests indicated the gymnasts reported significantly reduced pain (P¼.002; 53.5%) while wearing the braces for training on the pommel,floor, and parallel bars. The overall large effect size value was practically significant (d¼0.902). Discussion: For any wrist brace to be effective, it needs to be implemented when the gymnast experiences wrist pain before an injury occurs. This would minimize the development of pain-provoked adaptive movement patterns that perpetuate dysfunction. Conclusions: The brace with the volar gel pad is recommended to be worn as an adjunct to current strategies in management of gymnasts wrist pain or as an injury prevention device in skeletally immature gymnasts.

Details

Metrics

275 Record Views
7 Times Cited - Web of Science

InCites Highlights

These are selected metrics from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool, related to this output

Web Of Science research areas
Orthopedics
Rehabilitation
Surgery
Logo image