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SLAP repair may alter thoracic rotation in baseball pitchers
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According to recently published data, baseball pitchers who undergo superior labrum anterior-posterior repair can develop altered patterns of thoracic rotation compared with controls and pitchers who undergo biceps tenodesis.
Investigators used electromyographic and motion analyses to evaluate 11 pitchers with superior labrum anterior-posterior (SLAP) tears following treatment and seven uninjured control pitchers. Patients with SLAP tears underwent either SLAP repair or subpectoral biceps tenodesis (BT) at least 1 year prior and had returned to pitching without shoulder pain.
Pitchers who underwent SLAP repair showed significantly altered patterns of thoracic rotation compared with controls and pitchers who underwent BT, according to the researchers. These pitchers were also less likely to exhibit normal values for lead knee flexion at front foot contact than controls and pitchers undergoing BT.
Activity time plots indicated BT more closely restored normal muscle activation patterns within the long head of the biceps muscle than SLAP repair.
No significant differences were noted in variance from pitch to pitch or in pitching kinematics between the study groups, according to the researchers. Similarly, no significant differences were observed in the long or short head of the biceps muscle, deltoid, infraspinatus or latissimus activity.
Disclosure: See the study for a full list of all authors’ relevant financial disclosures.
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