COMPARISON OF SENSORIMOTOR INTEGRATION AND ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE BETWEEN COLLEGIATE ATHLETES WITH AND WITHOUT SPINALSAGITTAL IMBALANCE

I. Moustafa¹, M. Kim¹, T. Shousha¹, A. Arumugam¹, D. Harrison²

¹University of Sharjah, Physiotherapy, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, ²CBP Nonprofit (a Spine Research Foundation), Chiropractic, Eagle, United States

Background: The assumption that spinal sagittal alignment is important for better afferentation and sensorimotor control processes among young athletes has drawn some attention in the recent literature. However, many important questions regarding abnormal sagittal posture remain unanswered. One such research area that remains understudied, is whether sagittal imbalance in asymptomatic collegiate athletes can subtly impair neural function to the extent that it creates alterations in the sensorimotor processing and integration and might consequently affect athletic performance.

Purpose: To evaluate sensorimotor integration and athletic performance for participants with sagittal imbalance compared to strictly matched controls with normal sagittal alignment.

Methods: We measured sagittal imbalance, sensorimotor processing and athletic performance variables in 50 participants with a sagittal imbalance and in 50 participants matched for age, gender, and body mass index (BMI) with a normal sagittal alignment defined as having a sagittal imbalance > 30 mm. Sensorimotor processing and integration variables were: 1) amplitudes of the spinal N13, 2) brainstem P14, 3) parietal N20, P27, and 4) frontal N30 potentials. The athletic performance variables selected for the study were:
1) T-test agility,
2) leg power,
3) stork static balance test, and
4) Y-balance test (YBT).

Results: There was a statistically significant difference between the spinal imbalance group and control group for the sensorimotor integration variable: frontal N30 potentials ((p <0.001). Additionally, between-group differences were found for the sensorimotor processing variables: amplitudes of spinal N13 (p = 0.004), brainstem P14(p <0.001), and parietal N20(p =0.003) and P27(p <0.001) . Statistically significant differences between groups for the athletic performance variables were also identified: T-test agility(p = 0.01), leg power(p = 0.002), stork static balance test(p = 0.006), and YBT(p <0.001). The magnitude of the spinal sagittal imbalance showed a correlation with all athletic performance variables (p <0.001).

Conclusions: Collegiate athletes with sagittal imbalance exhibited altered sensorimotor processing and integration measurements and less efficient athletic performance compared to athletes with normal sagittal head posture alignment.

Implications: Because our investigation was not an interventional trial we cannot, with certainty, comment on how our findings translate directly into patient outcomes. However, since the collegiate athletes with sagittal imbalance exhibited altered sensorimotor processing and integration measurements and less efficient athletic performance, we recommend that interventions designed to improve spinal sagittal balance should be implemented as part of a multi-modal treatment approach.

Funding acknowledgements: It is self-funded study

Keywords:
Sagittal
Sensorimotor control
Athletes

Topics:
Sport & sports injuries
Musculoskeletal: spine

Did this work require ethics approval? Yes

Institution: University of Sharjah

Committee: University of Sharjah Research Ethics Committee

Ethics number: REC-22-04-22-S