ArticleBMJ open sport & exercise medicine2018
The Athletic Shoulder (ASH) test: reliability of a novel upper body isometric strength test in elite rugby players.
Article in BMJ open sport & exercise medicine, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 36 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
36 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Upper Extremity Return to Sport Functional Testing: A Systematic Review.Sports medicine - open · 2026Pooled it
- Validity and Reliability of the Athletic Shoulder Test: A Brief Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of musculoskeletal & neuronal interactions · 2025Pooled it
- Rethinking Warm-Up in Overhead Exercise: Acute Shoulder Responses to a Strength- and Mobility-Oriented Protocol in Youth Athletes.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Sport specific differences in upper limb median frequency responses during isometric push and pull tasks in volleyball and fitness athletes.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2026Article
- Concentric Versus Eccentric Exercise-Induced Fatigue on Proprioception, Motor Control and Performance of the Upper Limb in Handball Players: A Retrospective Study.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Assessment of Rotator Cuff External Rotation: Isometric vs. Isotonic Testing Modes.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2026Article
- Force Plate Based Assessment of Maximal and Rapid Isometric Shoulder Strength During the Return-to-Sport Process After Pectoralis Major Repair in a World-Class Female Wrestler: A Case Report.International journal of sports physical therapy · 2026Article
- Shoulder angle effects on neuromuscular activation and rapid force production: sEMG time-frequency and force-time analyses.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2026Article
- Objective clinical tests to inform decision-making prior to return to sport in athletes with shoulder instability: A scoping review.Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA · 2026Article
- The Reliability and Validity of a Novel Isometric Trunk Rotation Strength Test.International journal of sports physical therapy · 2026Article
- Chronic Effects of a Dynamic Stretching and Core Stability Exercise Protocol on Physical Performance in U-16 Volleyball Players.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Early Rate of Force Development and Maximal Strength at Different Positions of the Athletic Shoulder Test in Baseball Players.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Investigation of the intra and inter-day reliability of the athletic shoulder test using the wii balance board in volleyball players.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2025Article
- Deficits in Upper Limb Long Lever Isometric Force After Shoulder Stabilization Surgery in Australian Rules Footballers.Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine · 2025Article
- Assessment of Isometric Shoulder Strength in Swimmers: A Validation and Reliability Study of the ASH and iASH Tests.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2025Article
- Psychometric Properties of the Athletic Shoulder Test in Adolescent Tennis Players.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Resident Case Series: The Utility of the Athletic Shoulder Test Using Wireless Portable Force Plates for Measuring Peak Force in NCAA Division One Collegiate Quarterbacks.International journal of sports physical therapy · 2025Article
- Muscle activity relationships during isometric shoulder internal and external rotation using the ForceFrame dynamometer and athletic shoulder tests in baseball athletes.Frontiers in physiology · 2025Article
- Upper limb functional testing: does age, gender, and sport influence performance?JSES international · 2024Article
- Examining Changes in Shoulder Strength, Lower Body Power, and Body Composition among Collegiate Baseball Players after Completion of a Summer Baseball League Season.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesLower limb isometric tests are used to assess strength and strength asymmetries and monitor reductions in muscle force that may contribute to loss of performance and increase injury risk. Isometric tests in the upper body may be appropriate to monitor neuromuscular performance of the shoulder joint in sports involving contact and overhead actions. The aim of this study was to determine the reliability of a novel upper body isometric strength test.
methodsEighteen elite rugby players (age 22.4±4.6 years; body mass 95.5±13.4 kg) were tested on consecutive days. Maximal isometric contractions using both limbs against a force platform were assessed at three angles of abduction (180°, 'I'; 135°, 'Y' and 90
resultsInterday reliability for NPF was excellent in all test positions (ICC 0.94-0.98). The test demonstrated high absolute reliability values (SEM 4.8-10.8) and interday measurement error was below 10% in all test positions (CV 5.0-9.9%) except for the non-dominant arm I-position (CV 11.3%). Minimum detectable change was between 13.2 and 25.9 N.
conclusionThe Athletic Shoulder test demonstrated excellent reliability for each test position supporting its use as a reliable tool to quantify the ability to produce and transfer force across the shoulder girdle.
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