Abstract
Manual wheelchair users are at great risk for the development of upper extremity injury and pain. Any loss of upper limb function due to pain adversely impacts the independence and mobility of manual wheelchair users. There is growing theoretical and empirical evidence that fluctuations in movement (i.e., motor variability) are related to musculoskeletal pain. This perspectives paper discusses a local review on several investigations examining the association between variability in wheelchair propulsion and shoulder pain in manual wheelchair users. The experimental data reviewed highlights that the variability of wheelchair propulsion is impacted by shoulder pain in manual wheelchair users. We maintain that inclusion of these metrics in future research on wheelchair propulsion and upper limb pain may yield novel data. Several promising avenues for future research based on this collective work are discussed.
Highlights
There is growing theoretical and empirical evidence that fluctuations in movement are related to musculoskeletal pain. This perspectives paper discusses a local review on several investigations examining the association between variability in wheelchair propulsion and shoulder pain in manual wheelchair users
The experimental data reviewed highlights that the variability of wheelchair propulsion is impacted by shoulder pain in manual wheelchair users
The pain group had significantly smaller variability of peak resultant force than the no pain group. These observations further raise the possibility that variability during the push phase of wheelchair propulsion maybe related to upper limb pain in manual wheelchair users
Summary
Analysis of motor variability has been utilized as a new approach to understand ergonomic repetitive strain injuries (Srinivasan and Mathiassen, 2012). Our research team examined the variability of peak resultant force acting on the shoulder during the push phase of wheelchair propulsion in individuals with and without self-reported shoulder pain (Moon et al, 2013). The pain group had significantly smaller variability of peak resultant force than the no pain group These observations further raise the possibility that variability during the push phase of wheelchair propulsion maybe related to upper limb pain in manual wheelchair users. In another investigation, we focused on intra-individual variability during the recovery phase of wheelchair propulsion as a function of shoulder pain (Jayaraman et al, 2014). Further work is necessary to determine the appropriate variables of study
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
