Normative Hand Grip Strength Values in Swedish Male and Female Ice Hockey Players Across Competitive Levels

Обзор

This study measures hand grip strength in male and female ice hockey players across different Swedish leagues to create reference (normative) values for adult players. Hand grip strength is a simple test of how strongly a person can squeeze with their hand. Although it seems basic, it reflects overall upper-body strength and is widely used in both sports science and healthcare. In this project, players from different levels of ice hockey (including professional men's and women's leagues, junior players, and recreational players if available) will have their grip strength measured using a standardized hand dynamometer. Measurements will be taken in a consistent way across all participating clubs. The main goal is to build a reference database showing what "normal" grip strength looks like in ice hockey players depending on sex, league level, and playing position. This can help coaches, medical staff, and researchers better understand strength profiles in hockey athletes, support training and rehabilitation decisions, and provide benchmarks for future studies. No treatment or intervention is given as part of the study.

Подробное описание

This is a cross-sectional, descriptive, multi-league study designed to establish normative values for maximal isometric hand grip strength in adult Swedish ice hockey players.

Hand grip strength will be used as a standardized, low-cost proxy measure of upper-body muscular strength and general functional capacity. Although grip strength is widely used in clinical and sports science settings and has demonstrated good reliability when measured using standardized protocols, there is currently a lack of comprehensive normative data for adult ice hockey players. Existing literature is largely limited to youth cohorts or general athletic "combine"-type populations, with insufficient stratification for adult competitive ice hockey across sexes, league levels, and playing positions.

This study will include male and female players from multiple competitive levels in Swedish ice hockey, including professional leagues (SHL and SDHL), second-tier leagues (HockeyAllsvenskan and Women's Allsvenskan where feasible), junior elite levels (U18/U20), and potentially recreational adult players. Participants will be recruited through participating clubs during the pre-season or early competitive season period.

Grip strength will be measured using a standardized hand dynamometer according to a unified protocol aligned with established clinical measurement guidelines (including standardized positioning, device calibration, and repeated trials per hand). Both dominant and non-dominant hand grip strength will be recorded, and mean values will be used for analysis. To reduce inter-tester variability, participating sites will be instructed to follow a harmonized measurement protocol.

In addition to grip strength, basic demographic and anthropometric data will be collected, including age, sex, playing position (forward/defense), playing experience, height, and body mass. Where available, supplementary body composition data from club testing routines may also be included to allow exploratory analyses of strength relative to body size.

The primary purpose of the study is descriptive: to generate normative reference values (including percentiles) for grip strength in adult ice hockey players, stratified by sex, league level, and playing position. Secondary analyses will explore associations between grip strength and anthropometric and demographic variables.

This study does not include any intervention or experimental treatment. All measurements are non-invasive and performed during routine testing environments within clubs. The results are intended to support strength and conditioning practice, clinical assessment in sports medicine, and future research on performance, injury risk, and rehabilitation in ice hockey.

Первичные конечные точки

• Maximal Hand Grip Strength [Срок оценки: Baseline.]

Вторичные конечные точки (2)

• Anthropometric Characteristics [Срок оценки: Baseline.]
• Demographic and Playing Characteristics [Срок оценки: Baseline.]

Критерии участия

Критерии включения

• Adult male or female ice hockey players.
• Registered and actively participating in a Swedish ice hockey club during the current season.
• Participation in one of the included competitive levels: professional, semi-professional, junior elite, or recreational leagues in Sweden.
• Able to perform maximal hand grip strength testing. Provides written informed consent.

Критерии исключения

• Current acute injury of the upper extremity (hand, wrist, forearm, or elbow) that prevents safe or valid grip strength testing.
• Any medical condition that contraindicates maximal effort testing, as determined by team medical staff or study personnel.
• Refusal or inability to provide informed consent.

Критерии приведены из реестра в оригинале (на английском). Окончательную оценку соответствия проводит исследовательский центр.

Здоровые добровольцы: Нет

Дизайн исследования

Модель наблюдения

Другое

Центры проведения

Список центров уточняется — проверьте первичный протокол.

Публикации

• HAKIR - Handkirurgiskt kvalitetsregister, Swedish Hand Surgery Quality Registry. Nationell manual för mätning av rörelse och styrka [Internet]. Sweden; 2025 Sep. Report No.: Version 1, 2024. Available from: Version 1, 2024
• Chiarlitti NA, Delisle-Houde P, Reid RER, Kennedy C, Andersen RE. Importance of Body Composition in the National Hockey League Combine Physiological Assessments. J Strength Cond Res. 2018 Nov;32(11):3135-3142. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000002309. PMID 29065054
• Toong T, Wilson KE, Urban K, Paniccia M, Hunt AW, Keightley M, Reed N. Grip Strength in Youth Ice Hockey Players: Normative Values and Predictors of Performance. J Strength Cond Res. 2018 Dec;32(12):3494-3502. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000002815. PMID 30216250
• Roberts HC, Denison HJ, Martin HJ, Patel HP, Syddall H, Cooper C, Sayer AA. A review of the measurement of grip strength in clinical and epidemiological studies: towards a standardised approach. Age Ageing. 2011 Jul;40(4):423-9. doi: 10.1093/ageing/afr051. Epub 2011 May 30. PMID 21624928

Идентификаторы

NCT: NCT07567547 · 2026-02210-01B

Первоисточники (государственные реестры)

• ClinicalTrials.gov (NIH, США)

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