Physiological responses between players with and without spinal cord injury in wheelchair basketball small-sided games

Study Design: This is a comparative study between players with and without spinal cord injury (SCI) during a training task. Objective: This study examined physiological responses in commonly used small-sided games (SSGs) in well-experienced wheelchair basketball (WB) players with SCI and without SCI (Non-SCI). Setting: The study was conducted with a WB team in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain (2014). Methods: The team was divided into an SCI group (n=6) and a Non-SCI group (n=6). Absolute and relative heart rate (HR) along with tympanic temperature and perceived exertion (RPE) were recorded for both groups. Results: The two groups attained different absolute HR values for the same SSG. However, no significant differences were observed in relative HR between groups (% HRmean, % HRpeak and the percentage of the time spent in each HR zone: low, moderate, high and maximal) nor in tympanic temperature. Moreover, in relation to the bout evolution analysis (4 repetitions of 4 min), the Non-SCI group significantly increased (P<0.05) absolute HRmean and HRpeak during bouts, whereas the SCI group maintained them constant. Furthermore, the variations in the percentage of the time spent in each HR zone only were observed in the Non-SCI group. Conclusion: In spite of the Non-SCI group attaining higher absolute HR values, the SCI and Non-SCI groups may have similar HR relative values during a specific WB training task. However, the SCI group reported significantly higher values in respiratory RPE in the last bout than the Non-SCI group for the same SSG.