Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Dec;14(6):920-926.

NO DIFFERENCES IN HIP RANGE OF MOTION EXISTS BETWEEN BASEBALL PLAYERS WITH AN ULNAR COLLATERAL LIGAMENT TEAR AND HEALTHY BASEBALL PLAYERS

J Craig Garrison  1 , Joseph Hannon  1 , John Conway  2
Affiliations

NO DIFFERENCES IN HIP RANGE OF MOTION EXISTS BETWEEN BASEBALL PLAYERS WITH AN ULNAR COLLATERAL LIGAMENT TEAR AND HEALTHY BASEBALL PLAYERS

J Craig Garrison et al. Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2019 Dec.

Abstract

Background and purpose: Restrictions in hip rotational motion of the baseball athlete can alter throwing mechanics in a manner that is inefficient and increases risk of injury. The purpose of this study was to assess for differences in hip external rotation (ER) and internal rotation (IR) range of motion (ROM) between baseball players with an ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) tear and healthy baseball players.

Design: Case-control.

Methods: Eighty-seven baseball players with a UCL tear (UCL) were compared with 87 age, experience, and position-matched healthy baseball players (CONT). UCL were enrolled at the initial visit to the outpatient sports medicine facility while CONT were measured before their baseball season. Passive hip ROM (ER and IR) of the stance and lead limbs was measured in the prone position using a bubble goniometer. Hip total range of motion (TRM) was calculated by adding ER and IR of each limb. Independent t-tests were run to compare mean group differences for hip ROM (p<0.05).

Results: No differences between groups were discovered for hip ER on the stance (UCL = 33.9 °±9.9 °, CONT = 34.3 °±10.6 °, p = 0.8) or lead (UCL = 32.9 °±9.9 °, CONT = 34.4 °±10.0 °, p = 0.3) limbs. Similarly, there were no group differences in hip IR on the stance (UCL = 30.6 °±10.5 °, CONT = 29.6 °±9.5 °, p = 0.5) or lead (UCL = 33.5 °±17.5 °, CONT = 29.5 °±9.0 °, p = 0.1) limbs. The groups were also similar in hip TRM on the stance (UCL = 64.5 °±13.7 °, CONT = 64.0 °±17.2 °, p = 0.8) and lead (UCL = 66.4 °±17.4 °, CONT = 63.9 °±15.6 °, p = 0.3) limbs.

Conclusions: When measured in the prone position, hip passive ROM is not different between baseball players with a UCL tear compared to a matched healthy cohort.

Level of evidence: Level 3.

Keywords: baseball; hip ROM; ulnar collateral ligament.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Acknowledgements: The authors would like to thank the Texas Health Sports Medicine staff and research coordinators for their assistance in data collection. No outside funding was received for this work and no conflicts of interest exist.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Flow Diagram for Allocation of Healthy Controls vs. UCL-Injured.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Hip internal rotation range of motion measurement.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Chu S Jayabalan P Kibler W, et al. The kinetic chain revisited: New concepts on throwing mechanics and injury. PM&R. 2016;8(3):S69-S77. - PubMed
    1. Sgroi T Chalmers P Riff A, et al. Predictors of throwing velocity in youth and adolescent pitchers. J Shoulder Elbow Surg. 2015;24(9):1339-1345. - PubMed
    1. Laudner K Moore S Sipes R, et al. Functional hip characteristics of baseball pitchers and position players. Am J Sports Med. 2010;38(2):383-387. - PubMed
    1. Laudner K Wong R Onuki T, et al. The relationship between clinically measured hip rotational motion and shoulder biomechanics during the pitching motion. J Sci Med Sport. 2015;18(5):581-584. - PubMed
    1. Holt T Oliver G. Hip and upper extremity kinematics in youth baseball pitchers. J Sports Sci. 2016;34(9):856-861. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources