Study of Damage to the Drawing Arm Subacromial Bursa in Recurve Archers Based on a Finite Element Model

Abstract

Background: The purpose of this study was to simulate the drawing arm of male recurve archers by finite element method. And observe the stress changes of humerus and scapula on the subacromial bursa under different stages of special techniques. To investigate the mechanism of the subacromial bursa injury in male recurve archers. Methods: Collected a 22-year-old healthy men shoulder CT and MRI data, construct the bow side shoulder joint finite element model, contains the structure of the shoulder blades, clavicle, humerus, and subacromial bursa. The humerus on the drawing side of the curve was simulated to perform the raising the bow, drawing, holding and releasing actions on the scapula plane, analysis of stress changes in subacromial bursa. Results: The peak stress on the subacromial bursa varied greatly. From the start of raising the bow to the start of drawing, the stress peak decreased markedly from 0.280 MPa to 0.036 MPa. Then, the peak stress immediately increased to 0.347 MPa at the beginning of the holding and decreased to 0.262 MPa at releasing. Conclusions: The reason for the stress surge on the subacromial bursa in the holding phase is that its structure is easily squeezed by multiple surrounding tissue structures, resulting in high stress and susceptibility to damage. In combination with the depth of the structural site and the surrounding structural characteristics, this can prevent subacromial bursa injury. The results of this work are particularly relevant to the prevention of subacromial bursa injury in male recurve archers.