The Effect of Exercise Intervention on Forward Head Posture and Round Shoulder Posture in Symptomatic Competitive Swimmer

Fooyin University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Posture and Mobility of the Upper Quadrant; Forward Head Posture; Swimmer Shoulder

Treatments: Other: exercise intervention: included three strengthening exercises and two stretching exercises.

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT07403123

NCKU HREC-E-112-082-2

Details and patient eligibility

About

This study is an exercise intervention study, and its findings will help to clarify the effects of exercise on forward head posture and rounded shoulder posture in competitive swimmers. It is expected that the results of this study will assist in ensuring that forward head posture and rounded shoulder posture are taken into consideration when competitive swimmers undergo related exercise training in the future. The purpose of this experiment is purely for academic research and does not constitute a physical examination or a medical diagnosis.

Enrollment: 42 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 16 to 18 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

1. High school competitive swimmers
2. With shoulder pain: unilateral or bilateral shoulder pain who had a self-reported shoulder pain score of ≥ 40 points for at least one month, measured using a visual analogue scale (VAS). VAS scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating greater pain.
3. With round shoulder posture (RSP): Forward shoulder angle (FSA) ≥ 52°.
4. With forward head posture (FHP): forward head angle (FHA) ≥ 46°.

Exclusion criteria

1. A history of fractures
2. Previous surgery to the upper extremity or shoulder joint
3. Full-thickness rotator cuff tears
4. Cervical radiculopathy
5. Shoulder dislocation
6. Structural deformities of the cervical or thoracic spine
7. Any neurological disorder

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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42 participants in 2 patient groups

intervention group

Experimental group

Description:

The intervention group performed an exercise program targeting RSP and FHP, which included three strengthening exercises and two stretching exercises. Each session lasted approximately 50 minutes and was conducted three times per week for a total of eight weeks.

Treatment:

Other: exercise intervention: included three strengthening exercises and two stretching exercises.

non-intervention group

No Intervention group

Description:

The non-intervention group did not receive the above exercise training during the eight-week intervention period; however, the relevant exercise training was provided after the completion of the eight-week experiment.