None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
Auditory information is also used to shape predictions about the body. The marble hand illusion demonstrates that when vision of the hand being struck by a small hammer is paired with the sound of a hammer hitting a piece of marble, the hand starts to feel stiffer, heavier and harder, and this changes sensitivity to noxious input. Furthermore, auditory information of a creaky gate paired with back movement led to people overestimating forces applied to the back compared to pairing the movement with a smooth ‘whooshing’ sound. We wish to explore whether auditory information has an influence on pain and function using a clinical pain paradigm. The aim of this study is to examine the effect of auditory information on pain and function in people with AT. To achieve this, we will assess pain and leg stiffness with hopping in people with AT while they hop with no auditory input and compare this to a condition in which hopping is paired with auditory input that suggests enhanced functional capacity of the tendon (a springy “boing” sound) and hopping with auditory input that suggests impaired functional capacity of the tendon (a flat ”slapping” sound). To control for the confounding effect of sound we will also include a control condition in which participants hop while white noise is played through the speakers. Both studies will help inform 1) whether non-nociceptive information sources are important in influencing pain in a clinical condition and 2) reveal if changes in pain are associated with functional performance changes. Furthermore, by enhancing our understanding of how visual and auditory information influences pain intensity we will extend our understanding of the pain experience and may improve the potential utility of these types of feedback as a treatment tools.
Interventions
This study is a randomised cross over experiment in which participants will complete a standardised sub maximal hopping task of 10 single leg hops on a portable force plate under 4 different conditions in random order. Participants will be asked to self pace a series of 10 hops at their own natural hopping frequency. Participants will be asked to hop submaximally in bare feet (easy self paced hops) and wear loose sports clothing. The intervention will be administered by a Physiotherapist. No spe
This study is a randomised cross over experiment in which participants will complete a standardised sub maximal hopping task of 10 single leg hops on a portable force plate under 4 different conditions in random order. Participants will be asked to self pace a series of 10 hops at their own natural hopping frequency. Participants will be asked to hop submaximally in bare feet (easy self paced hops) and wear loose sports clothing. The intervention will be administered by a Physiotherapist. No specific training is required to administer the hopping tests or auditory input by the Physiotherapist. The four conditions will be 1) Hopping with no auditory feedback 2) Hopping with auditory input that suggests enhanced functional capacity of the tendon (Spring sound) 3) Hopping with auditory input that suggests impaired functional capacity of the tendon (wet cement sound) and 4)hopping with non-informative auditory input. Speakers will be connected to a laptop and positioned either side of the force plate. For the control condition white noise will be played through the speakers as the participant hops. For the two informative auditory trials the timing of the sound will be matched to their hopping frequency. The washout period will be 15 minutes. Participants will be blinded to the study hypotheses and order will be randomised and counterbalanced across condition. The physiotherapist will use a checklist to adhere to the specific protocol. All records and notes will be checked by a study supervisor. The intervention session will take approximately 1 hour.
Sponsors
The University of Notre Dame Australia
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Crossover
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to 60 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Participants will be included if they are a recreational runner with a history of unilateral mid portion Achilles tendinopathy for over 1 month. Participants must have sufficient English language skills to complete the questionnaires and be able to give consent to the test procedure. They must have normal hearing so that they can undertake the auditory feedback conditions. In addition the participants' Victorian Institute of Sports Assessment self-administered Achilles (VISA-A) score must be below 80
Exclusion criteria
Insertional AT will be excluded from this study. People with a non-painful hop test will also be excluded from the study. Participants with a history of foot or ankle injury or surgery within the previous six months or any coexisting lower quadrant musculoskeletal problem will be excluded. Participants with any report of clinically significant low back pain within the previous 3-months will also be excluded. Participants with active systemic disease such as diabetes or an inflammatory disorder and those taking regular analgesic medications will be excluded.
Outcome results
None listed