scholarly journals Importance of Maximal Strength and Muscle-Tendon Mechanics for Improving Force Steadiness in Persons with Parkinson’s Disease

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 471
Author(s):  
Rowan R. Smart ◽  
Cydney M. Richardson ◽  
Daryl J. Wile ◽  
Brian H. Dalton ◽  
Jennifer M. Jakobi
Keyword(s):  
Parkinson’S Disease ◽  
Parkinson's Disease ◽  
Plantar Flexion ◽  
Voluntary Contraction ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Force Steadiness ◽  
Tracking Tasks ◽  
Tendon Mechanics ◽  
Tendon Elongation ◽  
Underlying Causes

Although plantar flexion force steadiness (FS) is reduced in persons with Parkinson’s disease (PD), the underlying causes are unknown. The aim of this exploratory design study was to ascertain the influence of maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) force and gastrocnemius-Achilles muscle-tendon unit behaviour on FS in persons with PD. Nine persons with PD and nine age- and sex-matched non-PD controls (~70 years, 6 females per group) performed plantar flexion MVCs and sub-maximal tracking tasks at 5, 10, 25, 50 and 75% MVC. Achilles tendon elongation and medial gastrocnemius fascicle lengths were recorded via ultrasound during contraction. FS was quantified using the coefficient of variation (CV) of force. Contributions of MVC and tendon mechanics to FS were determined using multiple regression analyses. Persons with PD were 35% weaker during MVC (p = 0.04) and had 97% greater CV (p = 0.01) with 47% less fascicle shortening (p = 0.004) and 38% less tendon elongation (p = 0.002) than controls. Reduced strength was a direct contributor to lower FS in PD (ß = 0.631), and an indirect factor through limiting optimal muscle-tendon unit interaction. Interestingly, our findings indicate an uncoupling between fascicle shortening and tendon elongation in persons with PD. To better understand limitations in FS and muscle-tendon unit behavior, it is imperative to identify the origins of MVC decrements in persons with PD.

scholarly journals Influence of static stretching on viscoelastic properties of human tendon structures in vivo

2001 ◽  
Vol 90 (2) ◽  
pp. 520-527 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keitaro Kubo ◽  
Hiroaki Kanehisa ◽  
Yasuo Kawakami ◽  
Tetsuo Fukunaga
Keyword(s):  
Viscoelastic Properties ◽  
Plantar Flexion ◽  
Maximum Voluntary Contraction ◽  
Voluntary Contraction ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Static Stretching ◽  
Tendon Elongation ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Human Tendon

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influences of static stretching on the viscoelastic properties of human tendon structures in vivo. Seven male subjects performed static stretching in which the ankle was passively flexed to 35° of dorsiflexion and remained stationary for 10 min. Before and after the stretching, the elongation of the tendon and aponeurosis of medial gastrocnemius muscle (MG) was directly measured by ultrasonography while the subjects performed ramp isometric plantar flexion up to the maximum voluntary contraction (MVC), followed by a ramp relaxation. The relationship between the estimated muscle force (Fm) of MG and tendon elongation ( L) during the ascending phase was fitted to a linear regression, the slope of which was defined as stiffness of the tendon structures. The percentage of the area within the Fm- L loop to the area beneath the curve during the ascending phase was calculated as an index representing hysteresis. Stretching produced no significant change in MVC but significantly decreased stiffness and hysteresis from 22.9 ± 5.8 to 20.6 ± 4.6 N/mm and from 20.6 ± 8.8 to 13.5 ± 7.6%, respectively. The present results suggest that stretching decreased the viscosity of tendon structures but increased the elasticity.

scholarly journals Quantifying Topographical Changes in Muscle Activation: A Statistical Parametric Mapping Approach

Proceedings ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 71
Author(s):  
Patricio A. Pincheira ◽  
Eduardo Martinez-Valdes ◽  
Carlos De la Fuente ◽  
Felipe Palma ◽  
Oscar Valencia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Muscle Activation ◽  
Plantar Flexion ◽  
Statistical Parametric Mapping ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Voluntary Contraction ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Isometric Contractions ◽  
Parametric Mapping ◽  
Repeated Measures Anova

Regional changes in muscle activation occur at different contraction intensities. These changes can be observed with activity maps created with high-density electromyography (HDEMG). When quantifying these changes, statistical parametric mapping (SPM) is a neuroimaging technique that may be used to perform statistical analyses with high sensitivity and spatial resolution. The aim of this study was to identify regional changes in muscle activation at different contraction intensities, comparing SPM and the HDEMG barycenter (centroid). Twelve participants performed plantar flexion isometric contractions at 20%, 40%, and 60% of the maximal voluntary contraction (MVC), while HDEMG was recorded from the medial gastrocnemius. An SPM repeated measures ANOVA design revealed specific mediolateral and cephalocaudal changes in muscle activation with increasing contraction intensities, which were not clearly detected by the variation in the barycenter coordinates. Only SPM revealed statistically significant nonuniform changes in EMG amplitude between all increasing levels of muscle activation.

Effect of stretching training on the viscoelastic properties of human tendon structures in vivo

2002 ◽  
Vol 92 (2) ◽  
pp. 595-601 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keitaro Kubo ◽  
Hiroaki Kanehisa ◽  
Tetsuo Fukunaga
Keyword(s):  
Viscoelastic Properties ◽  
Plantar Flexion ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Passive Torque ◽  
Tendon Elongation ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Human Tendon ◽  
Passive Stretch ◽  
Flexibility Index

The purpose of this study was to examine whether stretching training altered the viscoelastic properties of human tendon structures in vivo. Eight men performed the stretching training for 3 wk. Before and after the stretching training, the elongation of the tendon and aponeurosis of medial gastrocnemius muscle was directly measured by ultrasonography while the subjects performed ramp isometric plantar flexion up to the voluntary maximum, followed by a ramp relaxation. The relationship between the estimated muscle force (Fm) and tendon elongation ( L) during the ascending phase was fitted to a linear regression, the slope of which was defined as stiffness of tendon structures. The percentage of the area within the Fm- L loop to the area beneath the curve during ascending phase was calculated as an index representing hysteresis. To assess the flexibility, the passive torque of the plantar flexor muscles was measured during the passive stretch from 0° (anatomic position) to 25° of dorsiflexion with a constant velocity of 5°/s. The slope of the linear portion of the passive torque-angle curve during stretching was defined as flexibility index. Flexibility index decreased significantly after stretching training (−13.4 ± 4.6%). On the other hand, the stretching training produced no significant change in stiffness but significantly decreased hysteresis from 19.9 ± 11.7 to 12.5 ± 9.5%. The present results suggested that stretching training affected the viscosity of tendon structures but not the elasticity.

scholarly journals Balance, gait and quality of life in Parkinson's disease: Effects of whole body vibration treatment

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 261-270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ludmylla Teixeira Soares ◽  
Aldo José Fontes Pereira ◽  
Lílian Danielle Paiva Magno ◽  
Hugo de Melo Figueiras ◽  
Luciane Lobato Sobral
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Parkinson’S Disease ◽  
Parkinson's Disease ◽  
Plantar Flexion ◽  
Whole Body Vibration ◽  
Whole Body ◽  
Life Questionnaire ◽  
Body Vibration ◽  
Vibrating Platform

Introduction Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder, which triggers limitations and disability in people. Therefore, rehabilitation therapy is widely recommended in patients with PD, especially those who do not respond to pharmacological treatment.Objective Evaluate the effect of a protocol of Whole-body Vibration (WBV) in balance, gait and Quality of Life (QOL) of patients with PD, who do not respond to pharmacological treatment.Methods It was performed 12 sessions of a protocol WBV (squat, plantar flexion, isometric contraction of members and single-leg balance), with three sets each, at a vibrating platform (2mm and 35Hz) in 10 PD patients. By the first 3 sessions, patients underwent 20 seconds of exercise and 20 seconds of rest. After the third session, the treatment was 40 seconds of exercise and 20 seconds of rest. The Tinetti Test was applied before and after treatment to assess balance and gait, and the Parkinson's Disease Quality of Life-questionnaire (PDQL-BR), to evaluate the PDQL-BR and its subcategories: Parkinson, Systemic, Social and Emotional.Results Treatment did not significantly change the balance (p = 0.438), QOL issue in Emotional (p = 0.450) and Social (p = 0.171), but improved gait (p = 0.003), the Tinetti (p ≤ 0.001), the quality of life in items Parkinson (p ≤ 0.001), Systemic (p ≤ 0.001) and PDQL-BR (p ≤ 0.001).Conclusions WBV exercises on the vibrating platform, according to the parameters used, showed promising results that encourage its use to improve the clinical conditions related to disorders of gait, balance and QOL in patients with PD.

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