Universal Journal of Public Health 6(3): 161-165, 2018 http://www.hrpub.org DOI: 10.13189/ujph.2018.060305 Is there Relationship between Pectoralis Minor Muscle Length and Shoulder Rotator Muscles Strength? i Tuğba Kocahan 1 , Bihter Akınoğlu 2 , Çağlar Soylu 2,* , Özge Çoban 2 , Necmiye Ün Yıldırım 2 1 The Ministry of Youth and Sports, Sports General Directorship, Department of Health Services, Center of Athlete Training and Health Research, 06793, Turkey 2 Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University, 06010, Turkey *Corresponding Author: fztcaglar5187@gmail.com Copyright©2018 by authors, all rights reserved. Authors agree that this article remains permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License Abstract Problem Statement: In joint movement, agonist and antagonist muscle strength, as well as the length and the shortness of these muscles is an important parameter. Muscle shortness is one of the factor that responsible of sports injuries. Shoulder is one of the most injured joint in Judo. In this joint, determination of the relationship between muscle shortness and agonist-antagonist muscles strength will be effective to increase muscle strength, sportive performance and prevent sports injuries. Purpose of Study: This study was conducted to determine the relationship between pectoralis minor (PM) muscle length and shoulder internal(IR)/external(ER) rotation isokinetic muscle strength in Judo athletes. Methods: The study included 80 (56 males, 24 female) professional Judo athletes aged between 14-25 (mean 17,31±2,51). Isokinetic muscle strength was assessed by ISOMED 2000 ® device. Pectoralis minor length was evaluated using a flexible tape measure in resting position. The assessments were made bilaterally. Findings and Results: There was a strong and statistically significant correlation between the PM length and the shoulder IR and ER peak torque values at both angular velocities and both sides (p <0,01). Conclusions and Recommendations: It was determined that the relationship between the length of the PM muscle and the internal and external rotator muscle strength of Judo athletes. Therefore, we think that by increasing shoulder muscle strength to enhance sportive performance, stretching exercises for PM muscle shortening should be added to training programs. Keywords Isokinetic Strength, Judo Players, Pectoralis Minor Length 1. Introduction Judo is a high-intensity competitive sport in which the athletes are constantly pulling and pushing each other while performing different techniques [1]. Judo athletes ought to be fast, strong and flexible to successfully defeat opponents’ moves. Flexibility may be defined as the maximal passive physiological range of motion in the joint movement. Lack of flexibility will affect the athlete’s ability to do certain Judo techniques. Athletes’ more flexible muscles lead improved range of motion in related joint which reducing risk of injury during the game [2]. The shoulder (22%) is one of the most commonly injured joint in Judo. Many factors such as age, gender, lack of muscle flexibility, strength asymmetry and sport year affect the occurrence of these injuries [3]. Among these factors; lack of muscle flexibility, especially inadequate pectoralis minor muscle length is responsible for making shoulder vulnerable to injury [4]. The pectoralis minor (PM) muscle attaches to the coracoid process of the scapula and inserts on ribs three, four, and five near the costosternal junction [5,6]. It is the only scapulothoracic muscle with an anterior thoracic attachment. The fiber orientation of the PM muscle favors scapular internal rotation (IR), downward rotation, and anterior tilt (AT), and for this reason, it is considered an antagonist to the necessary scapular motions during arm elevation. Repetitive use of the upper extremity for activities that protract and downwardly rotate the scapula may also contribute to adaptive shortening. PM’s adaptive shortening leads to changes in the resting position of the scapula and altered scapular kinematics and these changes can cause imbalance between agonist and antagonist muscle strength of shoulder joint [4]. While the relationship between muscle shortness and sports injuries has been determined in the literature [4,8], there is no sufficient evidence regarding these injuries’ mechanisms We hypothesized because of muscles that adaptively shortened due to repetitive movements being unable to contract in the optimal position, muscle strength would decrease and loss of strength would cause muscle strength imbalance