Remote Effects of Lower Limb Stretching

Goethe University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Fascia; Randomized Controlled Trial; Myofascial; Stretching

Treatments: Other: Static stretching Cervical; Other: Static Stretching lower limb

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT02564081

SpM2015-001

Details and patient eligibility

About

Recent research suggests that the skeletal muscles and the fibrous connective tissue form a body-wide network of myofascial chains. A systematic analysis of dissection studies suggests that fascia links at least a variety of muscles to myofascial chains (Wilke et al. 2015). As fascia can modify its stiffness, strain transmission along these meridians is supposable (Norton-Old et al. 2013). Tensile transmission along myofascial chains might contribute to the proper functioning of the movement system. However, despite solid evidence from in vitro studies, scarce data is available concerning the in vivo behavior of the meridians. The present study is conducted to resolve this research deficit and to elucidate whether stretching of the lower limb muscles increases neck mobility. Healthy subjects (n = 3 x 20) participate in the randomized controlled trial. One group performs three 30 s bouts of static stretching for the gastrocnemius and the hamstrings respectively. A control group remains inactive for the same time. Participants of the third group perform 6x30 s bouts of static stretching of the cervical spine in zhe sagittal plane (flexion only). Pre and post intervention as well as 5 min after the intervention, maximal cervical range of motion (ROM) in flexion/extension, lateral flexion and rotation was assessed using an ultrasonic movement analysis system.

Enrollment: 63 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 50 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• healthy participants after subscribing informed consent

Exclusion criteria

• severe orthopedic, cardiovascular, neurological, psychiatric or endocrine diseases, not completely healed traumata, drug intake in the past 48 hours, pregnancy and presence of muscle soreness.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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63 participants in 3 patient groups

Static Stretching lower limb

Experimental group

Description:

Three 30 s bouts of static stretching for the gastrocnemius and the hamstrings respectively

Treatment:

Other: Static Stretching lower limb

Static stretching Cervical

Active Comparator group

Description:

Six 30 s bouts of static stretching of the cervical spine in the sagittal plane (flexion only)

Treatment:

Other: Static stretching Cervical

Ctrl

No Intervention group

Description:

No intervention