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Video analysis of the mechanisms of shoulder dislocation in four elite rugby players

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Journal of Orthopaedic Science

Abstract

Background

Shoulder injuries are common in rugby, with the most severe match injury being shoulder dislocation and instability. A limitation of epidemiological studies is that the injury information is based on player interviews after the injury or reports from the medical staff. The objective of this study is to describe the specific injury mechanisms for shoulder dislocation using video recordings in a consecutive series of 4 elite male rugby players who sustained an episode of shoulder dislocation during an official match.

Methods

Videotapes were reviewed to identify the mechanism of the injury. The incidents, including the play leading up to each incident, were analysed. A shoulder dislocation mechanism score was developed to describe the injury mechanism and the events leading up to the injury.

Results

For all the athletes, player-to-player contact was responsible for the shoulder dislocation. Three of the four injuries resulted from trauma with the elbow in an extended position forcing the shoulder to exceed the limits of the normal range of motion, causing anterior shoulder dislocation. One injury resulted from trauma with the elbow in a flexed position and the direction of the injuring force along the longitudinal axis of the humerus causing posterior shoulder dislocation.

Conclusions

This study provides preliminary evidence that thorough video analysis can provide detailed information about the mechanisms of shoulder dislocation in elite rugby players. Knowledge of the common mechanisms of injuries in these athletes may potentially lead to improved sports technique to attempt to reduce the occurrence of shoulder dislocations. Further studies with a larger number of patients are required to better clarify the exact mechanism of shoulder dislocation in rugby players, and how these results may be applied in training and matches to prevent shoulder dislocation in elite rugby players.

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Acknowledgment

Many thanks to Charles King for help in collecting videotapes.

Conflict of interest

No benefits of any form have been received or will be received from any commercial party related directly or indirectly to the subject of this article.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery, Campus Bio-medico University, Via Alvaro del Portillo, 200, Trigoria, 00128, Rome, Italy

    Umile Giuseppe Longo & Vincenzo Denaro

  2. Department of Orthopedics, Haga Hospital, Sportlaan 600, 2566 MJ, The Hague, The Netherlands

    Polydoor Emile Huijsmans

  3. Centre for Sports and Exercise Medicine, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Mile End Hospital, 275 Bancroft Road, London, E1 4DG, UK

    Nicola Maffulli

  4. Cape Shoulder Institute, PO Box 15741, Panorama, 7506, South Africa

    Joe F. De Beer

Authors
  1. Umile Giuseppe Longo
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  2. Polydoor Emile Huijsmans
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  3. Nicola Maffulli
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  4. Vincenzo Denaro
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  5. Joe F. De Beer
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Correspondence to Umile Giuseppe Longo.

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Longo, U.G., Huijsmans, P.E., Maffulli, N. et al. Video analysis of the mechanisms of shoulder dislocation in four elite rugby players. J Orthop Sci 16, 389–397 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00776-011-0087-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00776-011-0087-6

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