Prevalência das lesões musculoesqueléticas nos paratletas com deficiência visual

Abstract

Introduction: Paralympic sports have received greater visibility in recent years. Events like these can lead participants to a high degree of stress, thus facilitating the involvement of injuries during the training process or championship period. Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of musculoskeletal injuries in paralyzed athletes from Instituto dos Cegos da Paraíba. Materials and methods: This is an observational cross-sectional study carried out from October 2022 to April 2023 at Instituto dos Cegos da Paraíba. An evaluation form of personal information, characteristics of disability and sports was used as a research instrument. Information on sports injuries and illnesses related to Paralympic sport was recorded in the form that followed the Swedish titled as The Sports-Related Injuries and Illnesses in Paralympic Sport Study (SRIIPSS). Results: A total of 20 para-athletes (28.10 ± 6.60 years) were evaluated. The most frequent sport modality was Goalball (65%). All classified para-athletes are visually impaired with 13 (65%) classified in category B1 (total blindness) of the para-sport. The prevalence of musculoskeletal injuries in the last year was 60%, the prevalence of pain/discomfort in the last week was 80%, the most frequent type of injury was sprain (21.4%) and the body region, the ankle (28.5%). Conclusion: The prevalence of musculoskeletal injuries in the last year was 60% and pain/discomfort in the last week was 80%, indicating a high rate of occurrence of sports injuries in athletes with visual impairment.