Soccer Practice and Functional and Social Performance of Men With Lower Limb Amputations

Abstract

Practicing sports together with rehabilitative treatment improves the development of motor, social and emotional abilities of lower limb amputees. The aim of this study was to compare the functional and social performance of individuals with lower limb amputations between those who played soccer and those who did not engage in any sports activities. A total of 138 individuals participated in the study and were divided into two groups: soccer players (n = 69, 34 ± 8.1 years) and non-athletes (n = 69, 38 ± 8.9 years). A checklist, based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health, was used. Data were analyzed using the Chi-square and Mann-Whitney tests. The soccer players group showed significantly better performance than the non-athletes group in most items of body function, body structure, occupational performance components and daily activities (p < 0.001 for all), and also in some important items of social and environment factors (p < 0.001 for all). The results strongly suggest that amputee soccer significantly improves the functional and social performance in individuals with lower limb amputations.

Amputee football in practice and research

“…He also noted that to enable persons with disabilities to be more independent, it is necessary to use sport in rehabilitation. Similar conclusions were drawn by Monteiro [9], who compared social activity of amputee football players (n=69) and amputees who did not do any sport (n=69). He pointed to greater work and everyday activity efficiency among trained individuals.…”

“…Stwierdził również, iż wykorzystanie sportu do rehabilitacji jest konieczne, aby umożliwić osobom niepełnosprawnym większą niezależność. Podobne wnioski wysnuł Monteiro [9], który porównał aktywność społeczną osób po niskich amputacjach kończyn dolnych trenujących ampfutbol (n=69) z osobami po amputacjach nieuprawiających żadnego sportu (n=69). Wskazał na lepszą wydajność w pracy osób trenujących, jak również podczas codziennych czynności życiowych.…”

Sport Injuries in Elite Amputee Football Players

“…Yanci (2014) compared the quality of life of amputated footballers and non-footballers; the study demonstrated that this discipline exerts beneficial effects on the quality of life of disabled people. Similar conclusions were also presented by Monteiro et al (2014) who compared the quality of life of individuals with lower limb amputations who played football and those who did not engage in any sport activities.…”

Postural Control during Progressively Increased Balance-Task Difficulty in Athletes with Unilateral Transfemoral Amputation: Effect of Ocular Mobility and Visuomotor Processing

“…On the one hand, previous studies have shown that participation in sports and/or regular physical activity has a positive effect on many aspects of amputee physical health, including cardiopulmonary, muscle strength, anaerobic power, balance and body composition [ 18 , 29 , 30 , 31 ], as well as social and psychological aspects of well-being [ 32 , 33 ]. On the other hand, it has been reported that sitting volleyball players with unilateral transfemoral amputation demonstrated poorer postural control in both static and dynamic tasks when compared to physically active non-amputees [ 1 ].…”