Clinical trial NCT03128814: The Degree, Development and Interrelationship of Structural and Functional Asymmetry in (Pre)Adolescent Elite Tennis Players
Official title: The Degree, Development and Interrelationship of Structural and Functional Asymmetry in (Pre)Adolescent Elite Tennis Players: A Prospective Cohort Study With a Link to Growth and Maturation, Technical Skill Performance and Whole Body Injury
Study type: OBSERVATIONAL
Overall status: UNKNOWN
Conditions: Development; Unilateral
Keywords: Tennis
Asymmetry
Structural
Functional
Lead sponsor: Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2017-04-25
Enrollment: 240
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 8
Maximum age (years): 16
Standard ages: CHILD
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Observational model: COHORT
Time perspective: PROSPECTIVE
Sampling method: NON_PROBABILITY_SAMPLE
Study population: Young elite tennis players enrolled in Belgian high-performance tennis academies as well as age- and gender-matched (within two months) controls.

Brief summary: Humans generally develop a preferred upper and lower extremity. Due to repetitive uneven loading, this gradually results in structural (e.g. increased bone and muscle mass) and functional (e.g. increased strength) adaptations to the dominant side of the body. The corresponding structural and functional asymmetry can be further accentuated by (intensively) practicing a unilateral sport such as tennis, which is very popular. Yet, research on this particular topic is scarce, especially in (pre)adolescent players. Existing studies, which often face methodological shortcomings (e.g. crosssectional designs, small sample sizes, no link to field methods), mainly focus on adults and structural asymmetry of the upper extremity itself, with very little or no attention to whole body structural as well as functional asymmetry. Moreover, the link of both forms of asymmetry with growth and maturation, everyday locomotion, technical skill performance and whole body injury is currently not (fully) understood. Therefore, the main purpose of this research project is to gain comprehensive knowledge on the degree, development and implications of both structural and functional asymmetry during a critical period in life using a longitudinal approach. As such, this project among youth elite tennis players will provide insights on the extent to which structural and/or functional asymmetry is acceptable for being most successful but remaining injury free.


Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Being enrolled in a Belgian high-performance tennis academy

Exclusion Criteria:

* Injury at the start of the data collection, any known musculoskeletal abnormality, developmental disorder or metabolic disease.

Primary outcomes:
measure: Anthropometry
timeFrame: September 2017 - December 2020
measure: Body composition
timeFrame: September 2017 - December 2020
measure: Functional test battery
timeFrame: September 2017 - December 2020
measure: Structural and functional asymmetry index
timeFrame: September 2017 - December 2020
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Injury incidence
timeFrame: September 2017 - December 2020
measure: Technical tennis skills performance
timeFrame: September 2017 - December 2020
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Brussels
country: Belgium
facility: Physical Education and Physical Therapy
Study officials:
affiliation: Vrije Universiteit Brussel
name: Peter Clarys, PhD
role: STUDY_DIRECTOR
affiliation: Vrije Universiteit Brussel
name: Eva D'Hondt, PhD
role: STUDY_DIRECTOR
References: