Como atletas de handebol com dor no ombro percebem e lidam com esse sintoma? Um estudo qualitativo

Abstract

Introduction: The handball, as a contact sport, entails a risk of injury for athletes and studies demonstrate that the rate frequency of shoulder injuries range from 35 to 40%, between acute and chronic. Although previous studies present biomechanical factors as determinants for maintenance of these symptoms, recent investigations highlight the influence of psycho-emotional questions in the intensification of pain. A qualitative approach to understand how athletes face these symptoms can offer crucial insights, enabling the analysis of neglected contexts in qualitative research. Objectives: Exploring how professional handball athletes perceive and deal with shoulder pain and identify how the individual and sports context contributes to the way the athlete perceives his condition and deals with it. Methods: This is a qualitative study with 13 athletes between 18 and 30 years old who play handball with the team of São Carlos city. The data collection was realized in two steps: 1) Form application for sample characterization and 2) semi-structured interview, according to the interview script prepared by the research team. The questions had as focus identity the athletes perception about your shoulder condition, about the factors who influence the condition or might be influenced by her. Results: The results bring us social and psychological factors, and as a highlight, the biological factors in the etiology of pain, in findings that expose the vision and experience of these athletes, making possible explore the individuality and collectivity of the reports. Conclusion: The studie corroborates the hypothesis that the shoulder pain is multifactorial, encompassing the three factors of the biopsychosocial model, however, the biological factors stand out. In addition, there was an emphasis on communication between the players and the coaching staff, which draws attention, evidencing that it is important that two-way communication is encouraged, preparing the athletes to report your symptoms and the technical coaching staff to welcome the complaint. Future studies are necessary to understand the expectations of the athletes about the physiotherapy treatment and for the investigation of the perception by the technical committee about your athletes shoulder pain.