Clinical and ultrasonographic evaluation of uninjured dominant shoulder in amateur rugby players vs a control group: a pilot study

Rugby is a sport involving a great number of shoulder collisions. Traumatic stress of the shoulder can weaken the static stabilizers and promote major injuries as dislocation or full-thickness tears of the rotator cuff. The goal of this study is to evaluate the clinical and ultrasonographic dominant shoulder factures in a group of amateur rugby players, with no history of shoulder injuries, and to compare them with those of a control group. 52 male subjects join in the study: 26 amateur rugby players and 26 subjects, which did not practice rugby or competitive sport. Clinical history was obtained from all subjects, followed by dominant shoulder physical and ultrasonographic exams. Rugby players showed a higher prevalence of positive clinical test, suggesting subacromial impingement than control group (p = 0.01). Among rugby group, five players (19,2