scholarly journals Response to Tendon Vibration Questions the Underlying Rationale of Proprioceptive Training

2017 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 97-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anat Vilnai Lubetzky ◽  
Sarah Westcott McCoy ◽  
Robert Price ◽  
Deborah Kartin

Context: Proprioceptive training on compliant surfaces is used to rehabilitate and prevent ankle sprains. The ability to improve proprioceptive function via such training has been questioned. Achilles tendon vibration is used in motor-control research as a form of proprioceptive stimulus. Using measures of postural steadiness with nonlinear measures to elucidate control mechanisms, tendon vibration can be applied to investigate the underlying rationale of proprioceptive training. Objective: To test whether the effect of vibration on young adults' postural control depended on the support surface. Design: Descriptive laboratory study. Setting: Research laboratory. Patients or Other Participants: Thirty healthy adults and 10 adults with chronic ankle instability (CAI; age range = 18−40 years). Intervention(s): With eyes open, participants stood in bilateral stance on a rigid plate (floor), memory foam, and a Both Sides Up (BOSU) ball covering a force platform. We applied bilateral Achilles tendon vibration for the middle 20 seconds in a series of 60-second trials and analyzed participants' responses from previbration to vibration (pre-vib) and from vibration to postvibration (vib-post). Main Outcome Measure(s): We calculated anterior-posterior excursion of the center of pressure and complexity index derived from the area under multiscale entropy curves. Results: The excursion response to vibration differed by surface, as indicated by a significant interaction of P < .001 for the healthy group at both time points and for the CAI group vib-post. Although both groups demonstrated increased excursion from pre-vib and from vib-post, a decrease was observed on the BOSU. The complexity response to vibration differed by surface for the healthy group (pre-vib, P < .001). The pattern for the CAI group was similar but not significant. Complexity changes vib-post were the same on all surfaces for both groups. Conclusions: Participants reacted less to ankle vibration when standing on the BOSU as compared with the floor, suggesting that proprioceptive training may not be occurring. Different balance-training paradigms to target proprioception, including tendon vibration, should be explored.

2013 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 214-227 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marius Dettmer ◽  
Amir Pourmoghaddam ◽  
Daniel P. O’Connor ◽  
Charles S. Layne

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Philippe Cyr ◽  
Noémie Anctil ◽  
Martin Simoneau

ABSTRACTIn humans, to reduce deviations from a perfect upright position, information from various sensory cues is combined and continuously weighted based on its reliability. Combining noisy sensory information to produce a coherent and accurate estimate of body sway is a central problem in human balance control. In this study, we first compared the ability of the sensorimotor control mechanisms to deal with altered ankle proprioception or vestibular information (i.e., the single sensory condition). Then, we evaluated whether successive stimulation of difference sensory systems (e.g., Achilles tendon vibration followed by electrical vestibular stimulation, or vice versa) produced a greater alteration of balance control (i.e., the mix sensory condition). Electrical vestibular stimulation (head turned ∼90°) and Achilles tendon vibration induced backward body sways. We calculated the root mean square value of the scalar distance between the center of pressure and the center of gravity as well as the time needed to regain balance (i.e., stabilization time). Furthermore, the peak ground reaction force along the anteroposterior axis, immediately following stimulation offset, was determined to compare the balance destabilization across the different conditions. In single conditions, during vestibular or Achilles tendon vibration, no difference in balance control was observed. When sensory information returned to normal, balance control was worse following Achilles tendon vibration. Compared to that of the single sensory condition, successive stimulation of different sensory systems (i.e., mix conditions) increased stabilization time. Overall, the present results reveal that single and successive sensory stimulation challenges the sensorimotor control mechanisms differently.


1999 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-109
Author(s):  
Reginald L. Reginella ◽  
Mark S. Redfern ◽  
Joseph M. Furman

Sensory information from lightly touching a reference with the hand is known to influence postural sway in young adults. The primary aim of this study was to compare the influence of finger contact (FC) with an earth-fixed reference to the influence of FC with a body-fixed reference. A second goal of this study was to determine if FC is used differently by older adults compared to younger adults. Using a force plate, center of pressure at the feet was recorded from blindfolded young and older subjects during several conditions. Subjects either did or did not lightly touch a force-sensitive plate that was either earth-fixed or moved forward and backward in synchrony with body sway (that is, sway-referenced). In addition, support surface conditions were also varied, including a fixed floor and a sway-referenced floor using an EquitestTM. Results showed that the type of FC, floor condition, and age each had an effect on postural sway. Touching an earth-fixed plate decreased postural sway as compared to no touching, while touching a sway-referenced plate incresased sway. This influence of FC was enhanced when the floor was sway-referenced. Although older subjects swayed more than young subjects overall, no age-FC interactions occurred, indicating that FC was not utilized differently between the age groups. This study suggests that FC cannot be disregarded as erroneous, especially when proprioceptive information from the legs is distorted. Further, FC is integrated with other sensory information by the postural control system similarly in young and older persons.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrej Olenšek ◽  
Matjaž Zadravec ◽  
Helena Burger ◽  
Zlatko Matjačić

Abstract BackgroundDue to disrupted motor and proprioceptive function lower limb amputation imposes considerable challenges associated with balance and greatly increases risk of falling in case of perturbations during walking. The aim of this study was to investigate dynamic balancing responses in unilateral transtibial amputees when they were subjected to perturbing pushes to the pelvis in outward direction at the time of foot strike on non-amputated and amputated side during slow walking.MethodsFourteen subjects with unilateral transtibial amputation and nine control subjects participated in the study. They were subjected to perturbations that were delivered to the pelvis at the time of foot strike of either the left or right leg. We recorded trajectories of center of pressure and center of mass, durations of in-stance and stepping periods as well as ground reaction forces. Statistical analysis was performed to determine significant differences in dynamic balancing responses between control subjects and subjects with amputation when subjected to outward-directed perturbation upon entering stance phases with non-amputated or amputated side.ResultsWhen outward-directed perturbations were delivered at the time of foot strike of the non-amputated leg, subjects with amputation were able to modulate center of pressure and ground reaction force similarly as control subjects which indicates application of in-stance balancing strategies. On the other hand, there was a complete lack of in-stance response when perturbations were delivered when the amputated leg entered the stance phase. Subjects with amputations instead used the stepping strategy and adjusted placement of the non-amputated leg in the ensuing stance phase to make a cross-step. Such response resulted in significantly higher displacement of center of mass. ConclusionsResults of this study suggest that due to the absence of the COP modulation mechanism, which is normally supplied by ankle motor function, people with unilateral transtibial amputation are compelled to choose the stepping strategy over in-stance strategy when they are subjected to outward-directed perturbation on the amputated side. However, the stepping response is less efficient than in-stance response. To improve their balancing responses to unexpected balance perturbation people fitted with passive transtibial prostheses should undergo perturbation-based balance training during clinical rehabilitation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 228-234
Author(s):  
Ziva M. Rosker ◽  
Jernej Rosker ◽  
Nejc Sarabon

Reports on body sway control following microdiscectomy lack reports on side-specific balance deficits as well as the effects of trunk balance control deficits on body sway during upright stances. About 3 weeks post microdiscectomy, the body sway of 27 patients and 25 controls was measured while standing in an upright quiet stance with feet positioned parallel on an unstable support surface, a tandem stance with the involved leg positioned in front or at the back, a single-leg stance with both legs, and sitting on an unstable surface. Velocity, average amplitude, and frequency-direction–specific parameters were analyzed from the center of pressure movement, measured by the force plate. Statistically significant differences between the 2 groups were observed for the medial–lateral body sway frequency in parallel stance on a stable and unstable support surface and for the sitting balance task in medial-lateral body sway parameters. Medium to high correlations were observed between body sway during sitting and the parallel stance, as well as between the tandem and single-legged stances. Following microdiscectomy, deficits in postural balance were side specific, as expected by the nature of the pathology. In addition, the results of this study confirmed the connection between proximal balance control deficits and balance during upright quiet balance tasks.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
James R. Chagdes ◽  
Joshua J. Liddy ◽  
Amanda J. Arnold ◽  
Laura J. Claxton ◽  
Jeffrey M. Haddad

Portable force-measurement technologies are becoming increasingly popular tools to examine the maturation of postural motor milestones, such as sitting and standing, in infants. These convenient, low-cost devices provide numerous opportunities to characterize postural development outside of the laboratory. However, it is important to understand the unique challenges and technical limitations associated with collecting center of pressure (CoP) data using portable force-measurement technologies in infant populations. This study uses a mathematical model to examine issues that emerge when using portable force-measurement technologies to collect sitting and standing postural data in infants. The results of our mathematical simulations demonstrate that the CoP errors from portable force-measurement technologies depend on the posture examined (e.g., sitting vs. standing), the anthropometrics of the person (e.g., height and weight), the frequency of body sway, and the experimental setup (e.g., an additional support surface being placed on top of the device). Recommendations are provided for developmental researchers interested in adopting these technologies in infant populations.


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