Based on the linked source; automatically prepared and checked against the original report.
Scope of the evidence
The review examined quantitative research concentrated in wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, and wheelchair tennis, while also incorporating studies of Para-cycling, mixed wheelchair-sport groups, and wider Paralympic cohorts. Researchers identified 22 eligible studies. Because the studies differed substantially in participants, designs, measurements, and outcomes, the findings were combined through narrative synthesis rather than statistical pooling.
Performance-related findings
Across the represented sports, performance was associated with several interacting characteristics, including trunk function, sport classification, wheelchair mobility, upper-body capacity, propulsion patterns, and workload responses. One small study of 10 wheelchair tennis athletes reported a strong relationship between medicine-ball throwing performance and serve accuracy. That result describes an association within that sample and should not be extended automatically to other athletes, sports, or settings.
Health burden and evidence limits
Prospective monitoring research identified notable injury and illness burdens among Para athletes. The review concluded that functional, biomechanical, workload, and health-related factors may jointly shape performance and health, while cautioning that the evidence base remains constrained by small samples, varied methods, and mainly observational research. Individual assessment, workload tracking, and health surveillance were presented as provisional considerations, not established universal practice standards.
