Muscle Stretching
Conditions
Keywords
Hamstring, Passive Knee extension test, Straight-leg-raise, maximun hip flexion, musculoskeletal response, nerve response
Brief summary
Background: Muscle stretching is a technique widely used in the clinical practice of physiotherapy and in the field of sports. In the bibliography we find a multitude of stretches and procedures described, some of them being similar to neurodynamic tests, which could direct their effect to a neural and not a musculoskeletal structure. The structural differentiation manoeuvre has been shown to be able to discriminate the increase in tension on the nerve. Objective: To evaluate the short-term efficacy on ischiosural muscle elongation of three modalities of ischiosural stretching according to neural or muscular involvement, in subjects without previous pathology. Design: Cross sectional study. Methods: A randomised, blinded, assessor-blinded clinical trial was performed. According to the sample size calculation, a total of 35 subjects will be recruited from the International University of Catalonia. Each subject will undergo three hamstring stretching techniques on their dominant leg, Straight-leg-raise (SLR), Passive knee extension (PKE) and Maximun hip flexion (MHF) with an interval of one week on the dominant leg. Muscle elongation in each stretching modality will be assessed with the modified black saver sit and reach test and whether the technique generates a neural or musculoskeletal response when performing the structural differentiation manoeuvre.
Detailed description
Background: Muscle stretching is a technique widely used in the clinical practice of physiotherapy and in the field of sports. In the bibliography we find a multitude of stretches and procedures described, some of them being similar to neurodynamic tests, which could direct their effect to a neural and not a musculoskeletal structure. The structural differentiation manoeuvre has been shown to be able to discriminate the increase in tension on the nerve. Objective: To evaluate the short-term efficacy on ischiosural muscle elongation of three modalities of ischiosural stretching according to neural or muscular involvement, in subjects without previous pathology. Design: Cross sectional study.
Interventions
OTHERStraight-leg-raise (SLR)
The stretched lower limb was on a mobile support and the contralateral limb was stabilized with a belt on the bench. For the SLR, the knee was kept in full extension and then, hip flexion was performed until a marked resistance. All stretching modalities were applied until a marked resistance was felt by the physical therapist (end-feel) or until the point of maximal tolerance referred by subjects.The stretch lasted 30 seconds followed by 15 seconds rest period and the procedure was repeated 5 times. Each stretching was applied for 5 minutes
OTHERPassive Knee extension test (PKE)
The stretched lower limb was on a mobile support and the contralateral limb was stabilized with a belt on the bench. For the PKE, the hip was kept in 90º flexion and then, knee extension was performed. All stretching modalities were applied until a marked resistance was felt by the physical therapist (end-feel) or until the point of maximal tolerance referred by subjects. The stretches lasted 30 seconds followed by 15 seconds rest period and the procedure was repeated 5 times. Each stretching was applied for 5 minutes
OTHERMaximum hip flexion (MHF)
The stretched lower limb was on a mobile support and the contralateral limb was stabilized with a belt on the bench. For MHF, a maximal hip flexion was performed and then, knee extension was applied. All stretching modalities were applied until a marked resistance was felt by the physical therapist (end-feel) or until the point of maximal tolerance referred by subjects. The stretches lasted 30 seconds followed by 15 seconds rest period and the procedure was repeated 5 times. Each stretching was applied for 5 minutes
Sponsors
Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
CROSSOVER
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)
Masking description
A single-blind (evaluator) randomized controlled trial
Intervention model description
Cross sectional study. Randomized controlled trial
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Healthy subjects over 18 years old who signed the informed consent.
Exclusion criteria
* The
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Modified back-saver sit-and-reach test | Through study completion, an average of 3 weeks. | subjects will perform a single-leg sit-and-reach on a bench. The untested leg will be placed on the floor with knee at approximately 90º. A measuring tape will be placed on the bench. Subjects aligned the sole of the foot of the tested leg with the 50-cm mark on the measuring tape. Thereafter, subjects will be asked to reach forward as far as possible while maintaining the knees, arms, and fingers fully extended, and keep in the two hands on tip of each other and palms down |
| Distal sensation | Through study completion, an average of 3 weeks. | Passive ankle dorsiflexion was performed as distal sensation manoeuvre at the final position of all stretching modalities. Subjects were asked to indicate if the sensation during the stretching was modified during the ankle dorsiflexion (neural response) or was the same (musculoskeletal response) |
| Force intensity applyed | Through study completion, an average of 3 weeks. | The intensity of the force applied during each stretching modality was measured by a manual dynamometer (MicroFET2, Hoggan Scientific, Salt Lake City, Utah). The dynamometer was applied on the distal leg, proximal to the ankle joint. The physiotherapist performed the stretching until a marked resistance was felt and then, the force was registered. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Perceived sensation | Through study completion, an average of 3 weeks. | After the stretching application, all subjects were asked about their perceived sensation. They were asked about the intensity of the tension sensation during the technique. A numeric scale, ranging from 0 (no tension) to 10 (worst tension imaginable) was used to indicate the intensity of tension sensation during the stretching technique. |
Countries
Spain
Outcome results
None listed