Considerations of Throwing Athletes With Upper Extremity Injury When Completing the Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE): A Report From the Athletic Training Practice-Based Research Network.

CONTEXT

The Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (SANE) is a widely used patient-reported outcome (PRO) measure that provides an efficient but limited view of patient perceptions of health. Knowledge of what throwing athletes with upper extremity injury consider when answering the SANE would inform score interpretation and increase its value for clinical decision-making in this patient population.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the global rating of the SANE and its ability to capture constructs of health reflected in PRO measures that are commonly used in throwing athletes with upper extremity sport-related injury.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study.

SETTING

Retrospective database review.

PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS

De-identified patient records of baseball and softball athletes diagnosed with upper extremity sport-related injury between October 2009 and June 2021 were reviewed.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Primary outcomes were scores on the SANE; Functional Arm Scale for Throwers total; Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand total; and Global Rating of Daily Activities. The first administration of all PROs that patients completed postinjury was analyzed as a potential predictor of SANE scores. The proportion of variance uniquely accounted for in the SANE by each predictor (R2) variable was estimated.

RESULTS

Fifty-five patients completed PRO measures. The Functional Arm Scale for Throwers total uniquely accounted for 32.9% (P < .001), the Global Rating of Daily Activities uniquely accounted for 11.6% (P < .001), and the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand total uniquely accounted for 4.6% (P = .036) of the variance in the SANE score. Overall, the predictors accounted for 49.2% of the variance in the SANE score (P < .001).

CONCLUSIONS

Given that the SANE captures multiple constructs of health, it may be useful in gathering a quick, broad view of throwing athletes' perception of their health. When SANE scores suggest diminished health, then multi-item PROs should be considered to further explore constructs of health most affected.