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SLAP repairs in pitchers had minimal impact on glenoid retroversion
Professional baseball pitchers that never underwent SLAP repairs display increased glenoid retroversion in their dominant arm, according to findings from a recent investigation.
Researchers measured shoulder range of motion (ROM) in 58 professional pitchers and found the athletes had 8.7° glenoid retroversion (GRV) in the dominant shoulder and 5.5° in the non-dominant shoulder, according to the abstract. The glenoid superior inclination measurements were not statistically different between the participants’ shoulders.
In pitchers that had undergone SLAP repairs, the trend of greater GRV measurements was not observed in either shoulder, the researchers noted in the study. Furthermore, pitchers or without a SLAP repair history showed no statistical difference in shoulder range of motion for horizontal adduction, and external or internal rotation, according to the abstract.
“Our findings suggest that the development of increased GRV in the dominant shoulder of professional baseball pitchers may be a protective adaptive change not reflected in glenohumeral ROM measures,” the researchers stated in the abstract.