Paralympic athletes actively participate in many sports despite their physical limitations and continue to develop both individually and athletically. Assessing the physical and functional capacities of these athletes is important in terms of performance and health. This study aimed to examine the relationships between respiratory function, respiratory muscle strength, lung age, balance, and quality of life in Paralympic athletes. Additionally, it was evaluated whether there were significant differences in these parameters according to disability type and gender.
The study included 24 Paralympic athletes from the disciplines of athletics, swimming, archery, and wheelchair basketball. Participants had various orthopeadic and neurological disability types, including cerebral palsy, lower extremity amputation, spinal cord injuries (C5-T6 and T7 and below), hypotonia, poliomyelitis, spina bifida, brachial plexus injury, and short stature. Respiratory function was assessed using forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV₁), FEV₁/FVC ratio, peak expiratory flow (PEF), and forced expiratory flow (FEF25-75%); respiratory muscle strength was assessed using maximum inspiratory pressure (MIP) and maximum expiratory pressure (MEP). Lung age was calculated based on FEV₁ values, balance was measured using the Modified Functional Reach Test, and quality of life was determined using the Short Form (SF-36) questionnaire. Significant correlations were found between parameters. Based on the study results, supporting respiratory muscle strength in Paralympic athletes may be an important goal in rehabilitation and training programs to support respiratory function, lung age, and quality of life parameters.