Trunk rotation strength and endurance in healthy normals and elite male golfers with and without low back pain.

Background: The relative importance and asymmetric loading of the trunk muscles in golf (slow rotation backswing followed by high velocity downswing) may cause side-to-side imbalances in axial rotation strength and endurance characteristics amongst elite players who frequently play and practice. Such imbalances may further be compounded by the presence of low back pain.

Objective: To establish and compare trunk rotation strength and endurance of healthy individuals who do not play golf and those that are highly skilled at the sport. Additionally, a smaller group of elite golfers with non-debilitating low back pain (LBP) were also evaluated and compared to their healthy counterparts.

Methods: Forty healthy non-golfing control subjects, 32 healthy elite golfers, and 7 golfers with LBP participated in this study. Bilateral trunk rotation strength and endurance was assessed using the Biodex System III Isokinetic Dynamometer with torso rotation attachment. Strength and endurance data was analyzed using 2-way ANOVA.

Results: No significant differences in peak torque were found within or between groups. However, golfers with LBP demonstrated significantly less endurance in the non-dominant direction (the follow-through of the golf swing) than either healthy group. No significant difference in endurance was found between the non-golfing controls and the healthy elite golfers.

Conclusions: Trunk rotation endurance in golfers with LBP might be more important than strength alone in the prevention and treatment of LBP. The results from this study provide useful information on possible risk factors associated with low back pain in golfers (decreased endurance) and allow for sport-specific clinical intervention strategies to be developed.