Preseason Assessment for Throwing Shoulders in Korean Professional Baseball League Pitchers and Factors Affecting Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Shoulder and Elbow Scores / 대한스포츠의학회지

ABSTRACT

Purpose@#This study was performed to verify affecting factors to Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic Shoulder and Elbow score (KJOCS) in Korean professional baseball league pitchers at preseason by assessing related variables for throwing. @*Methods@#Twenty-seven pitchers from the Korean professional baseball league were enrolled in January 2017. The Korean version of KJOCS was administered to each pitcher, and demographics as well as pitching-related indexes such as innings pitched, earned run average in 2016 were collected. Regarding the assessment of the throwing arm, total rotational motion, horizontal adduction, and abduction were measured. Related shoulder physical examinations were also evaluated. The side-to-side difference was evaluated between the throwing and non-throwing arms, and the glenohumeral internal rotation deficit was also calculated. The correlation analyses between KJOCS and variables regarding throwing shoulders as well as demographics and pitching-related indexes were performed. @*Results@#Regarding the throwing shoulder, the total rotational motion (r=0.45), internal rotation at 90° abduction (r=0.492), and abduction (r=0.446) of the throwing shoulder were positively correlated with the KJOCS (all p＜ 0.05). Among demographics, age (r=−0.637) and career (r=−0.549) were negatively correlated with the KJOCS (p＜ 0.05).In multiple regression analysis, age was a single associated factor to the KJOCS inversely (r2 =0.466, p=0.001) in Korean professional baseball league pitchers at preseason. @*Conclusion@#Age was the only affecting factor on KJOCS of pitchers in the Korean professional baseball league and KJOCS could not reflect subtle changes in range of motion and any positive findings of physical examinations in pitchers at preseason.