Relationship Between Thoracolumbar Joint Position Sense And Range Of Motion Among Collegiate Baseball Players

Joint position sense can be altered by changes in ROM. Baseball players often develop unique adaptations in thoracolumbar spine ROM; however, the strength of relationships between these adaptations and joint position sense have not been investigated. PURPOSE: Determine the relationship between joint position sense and ROM in the thoracolumbar spine of collegiate baseball players. METHODS: A cross-sectional design was used to study 32 healthy NCAA Division I baseball players (age = 20.3 ± 1.4 yrs, height = 187.2 ± 6.1 cm, mass = 93.0 ± 6.8 kg). Predictor variables included active thoracolumbar rotation ROM toward the throwing (Rot-ROMThrowing) and non-throwing (Rot-ROMNon-Throwing) arm sides, flexion (Flex-ROM), and side bending toward the throwing (Sidebend-ROMThrowing) and non-throwing (Sidebend-ROMNon-Throwing) arm sides. Criterion variables included joint position sense, measured as the absolute amount of active repositioning error (ARE) at 50% of each subject’s respective ROM for thoracolumbar rotation toward the throwing (Rot-AREThrowing) and non-throwing (Rot-ARENon-Throwing) arm sides, flexion (Flex-ARE), and side bending toward the throwing (Sidebend-AREThrowing) and non-throwing (Sidebend-ARENon-Throwing) arm sides. All measurements were captured using bubble inclinometers before the start of the competitive season. Pearson correlation analyses were used to examine the strength of relationships between all ROM and ARE variables (P < .05). RESULTS: Findings revealed weak-moderate, positive, significant relationships between Rot-ROMThrowing and Rot-ARENon-Throwing (r = .42, P = .02), Flex-ROM and Flex-ARE (r = .38, P = .03), Sidebend-ROMNon-Throwing and Rot-ARENon-Throwing (r = .47, P = .01). No other significant relationships were found (r < .35, P > .05). CONCLUSION: Results indicated that in some directions, increased thoracolumbar ROM was related to increased joint position sense error. Clinicians should consider these findings in their efforts to examine and manage optimal function in the thoracolumbar spine among competitive baseball athletes.