Wheelchair hockey improves quality of life in people with neuromuscular disease.

Background: Participation in sports is known to have positive effects on people's health and psychosocial well-being. Recently, physical activity implications for people with disabilities have been explored, showing promising results on quality of life and self-concept. However, few studies have specifically investigated the effects of participation in adaptive sports on quality of life in patients with neuromuscular disease.

Objective: To evaluate differences in psychosocial well-being between people affected by a neuromuscular disease who play wheelchair hockey and those who do not. Individuals playing an adaptive sport would report better quality of life, higher physical self-efficacy scores, and more effective coping strategies, as assessed by self-reported measures.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: Data were collected during clinical follow-ups at the NEMO Clinical Center in Milan (Italy).

Participants: A total of 25 patients affected by neuromuscular diseases, ages 18 to 40 years, participated in the study.

Interventions: Not applicable.

Main Outcome Measures: The primary outcome was to compare quality of life between groups. Secondary outcomes were the comparisons of physical self-efficacy and coping strategies through self-reported measures.

Results: Wheelchair hockey players scored significantly higher on the Quality of Life Index (specifically on the health/functioning and psychological/spiritual sub-scales) and reported better physical self-efficacy and perceived physical ability compared to the control group (i.e., patients who do not participate in any adaptive sport), controlling for age and pathology. On the contrary, no difference was found in coping strategies between the two groups.

Conclusions: This study identified a significant association between participation in wheelchair hockey and improved physical and psychological well-being of people affected by neuromuscular diseases compared to those who are not involved in adaptive sports.