Prevalence of shoulder instability after rotator cuff injury in professional cricket bowlers

Objectives: Although cricket is extremely popular in South Asia, there is limited epidemiological literature on shoulder instability in the post-rotator cuff injury period. The objective of the study is to determine the prevalence of shoulder instability among cricket bowlers who have suffered a rotator cuff injury. Methods: A cross-sectional, descriptive design was used with a sample of 126 male professional bowlers, aged 18–35 years, recruited through three established professional cricket academies. Professional status was operationalized as athletes who enrolled in structured, academy-based training programs and had played competitive league or inter-academy matches for at least 1 year. The Oxford Instability Shoulder Score (OISS) was used to assess shoulder instability and its related functional impairments. To estimate prevalence rates and the distribution of symptomatic manifestations, descriptive statistics were used. Results: Findings, based on OISS categorization, showed that respondents had 92.9% fair shoulder function, 4.8% good, and 2.4% poor functions. Among participants, 79.4% had reported at least one episode of shoulder subluxation or dislocation in the past 6 months, with estimates of once or twice each month. The presence of moderate-to-severe shoulder pain and functional interference with occupational tasks, training, and competitive involvement was common. No statistically significant correlation was detected between age group and instability severity ( P = 0.64). Conclusion: Self-reported shoulder instability-related symptoms with a prior rotator cuff injury were high in bowlers, with 79.4% reporting at least one episode of subluxation or dislocation in the previous 6 months.