Shoulder injuries in archery.

Twenty-one elite-calibre archers (M = 12, F = 9) were investigated concerning all past and present archery-related shoulder injuries, using a questionnaire and physical examination. The questionnaire revealed that 11 of 21 archers had complained of significant shoulder injuries either currently or during their careers. While 9/12 men never had shoulder problems during an average of 13.5 years, only 4/9 women escaped injury during a mean 10.9 year competitive career. Deficits in training programs were noted, including lack of training and non-specific exercises. Clinical examination demonstrated shoulder asymmetry and decreased flexibility in the drawing arm (DA) shoulder. Functional testing revealed a positive impingement sign in 6/21 DA shoulders. Supraspinatus testing showed abnormalities in 4/21 DA shoulders. Pain was referred posteriorly with the impingement maneuver in 5/21 DA shoulders and abnormal external rotation testing was observed in 8/21 DA shoulders. Generally, the females had proportionally more signs and symptoms of shoulder injury than the men, especially involving the DA shoulder. Testing implicated supraspinatus impingement/tendonitis and infraspinatus/teres minor traction tendonitis. These clinical findings correlated with cadaver prosection observations.