H-reflex changes during static stretching and two variations of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation techniques

Etnyre, Bruce; Abraham, Lawrence D.

doi:10.1016/0013-4694(86)90010-6

Cited by 90 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…These effects are the sum of influences exerted by the command to contract or relax the triceps surae muscle and of the influences connected with changes in the peripheral input from the moving muscles or joint. In fact, passive dorsal flexion of the foot leads to H-reflex inhibition (see also Mark, Coquery & Paillard, 1968;Gottlieb & Agarwal, 1978;Robinson, McComas & Belanger, 1982;Davies & Lader, 1983;Etnyre & Abraham, 1986), while afferent inputs from passive rotation in the plantar direction do not appear to have major effects on the excitability of the H reflex, at least within the rotation range studied in these experiments.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reflex excitability of human soleus motoneurones during voluntary shortening or lengthening contractions.

Romano

Schieppati

1987

The Journal of Physiology

137

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SUMMARY1. We investigated the possibility that increase or decrease in the monosynaptic reflex excitability of the soleus muscle in man might play a role in matching the muscle mechanical output to the voluntary command aimed at performing isotonic contractions or relaxations, at various velocities.2. Rectified and integrated electromyographic activity (e. m. g.) and the H reflex of soleus were measured during plantar flexions against a constant load (shortening contractions) or dorsal flexions resisting the load (lengthening contraction), performed without activation of pretibial muscles.3. At the same ankle joint angle, integrated e. m. g. was larger during shortening contractions than during lengthening contractions. During shortening contractions, integrated e. m. g. increased as a function of the velocity of plantar flexion. During lengthening contractions, integrated e. m. g. decreased as a function of dorsal flexion and angular velocity and nearly disappeared in the last part of the most rapid lengthening contractions.4. During shortening contractions, the H reflex increased beyond the extent expected for the level of e. m. g. activity; during lengthening contractions, reduction of the H reflex below control values at rest occurred in spite of background e. m. g. activity.5. When the level of e. m. g. activity was kept constant, the above changes in H reflex were larger in both directions as a function of the velocity of the movement.6. Passive rotation in the dorsal direction contributed to the inhibition observed during lengthening contractions.7. It is suggested that these changes in the excitability of the H reflex, probably presynaptic in origin, serve the purpose of appropriately modulating the rate and extent of motoneurone recruitment during shortening and lengthening contractions. This allows the foot to follow a constant-velocity path in spite of the perturbing effects of the spindle afferent inputs and of the muscle characteristics described by the force-length and force-velocity diagrams.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reflex excitability of human soleus motoneurones during voluntary shortening or lengthening contractions.

Romano

Schieppati

1987

The Journal of Physiology

137

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“…3,10,16 It has been proposed that PNF methods, particularly those involving reciprocal activation of the agonist and antagonist to the desired motion, provide the greatest potential for muscle lengthening. 4 The immediate effects of combining STM and PNF interventions were demonstrated in a previous study using healthy subjects, where improvements were made in hip ROM utilizing midrange STM combined with PNF. 5 In a case series of 3 patients with shoulder impingement syndrome and accompanying limitations in shoulder abduction, myofascial massage and stretching of the subscapularis resulted in a return to full painless function in all 3 patients.…”

mentioning

confidence: 90%

The Immediate Effects of Soft Tissue Mobilization With Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation on Glenohumeral External Rotation and Overhead Reach

Godges

Mattson-Bell²,

Thorpe³

et al. 2003

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther

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Study Design: Randomized controlled 2-group, pretest-posttest, multivariate study of patients with shoulder musculoskeletal disorders. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the immediate effect of soft tissue mobilization (STM) with proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) to increase glenohumeral external rotation at 45°of shoulder abduction and overhead reach. Background: It is postulated that limitation in glenohumeral external rotation, when measured at 45°of shoulder abduction, represents subscapularis muscle flexibility deficits and is associated with the inability to fully reach overhead. No research, however, is available to demonstrate whether intervention strategies intended to improve subscapularis flexibility and glenohumeral external rotation range of motion at 45°of shoulder abduction will improve a patient's ability to reach overhead. Methods and Measures: Twenty patients (10 males, 10 females; age range, 21-83 years) with limited glenohumeral external rotation and overhead reach of 1 year duration or less served as subjects. The subjects were randomly assigned to a treatment group, which consisted of soft tissue mobilization to the subscapularis and proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation to the shoulder rotators, or a control group. Goniometric measurements of glenohumeral external rotation at 45°a bduction and overhead reach were taken preintervention and immediately postintervention for the treatment group or at prerest and postrest periods for the control group. Results: The treatment group improved by a mean of 16.4°(95% confidence interval [CI], 12.5°-20.3°) of glenohumeral external rotation, as compared to less than a 1°gain (95% CI, Ϫ0.2°-2.0°) in the control group (PϽ.0005). Overhead reach in the treatment group improved by a mean of 9.6 cm (95% CI, 5.2-14.0 cm) in comparison to a mean gain of 2.4 cm (95% CI, Ϫ0.8-5.6 cm) for the control group (P = .009). Conclusion: These findings suggest that a single intervention session of STM and PNF was effective for producing immediate improvements in glenohumeral external rotation and overhead reach in patients with shoulder disorders. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2003;33:713-718.

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“…Among stretching techniques, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching, which inhibits tonic reflex activity as a limiting factor during stretches, and increases ROM markedly (Moore and Hutton, 1980;Etnyre and Abraham, 1986;Guissard et al, 1988). Both mechanical and neural adaptation mechanisms are responsible for these changes during stretching (Guissard and Duchateau, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigation into the long-term effects of static and PNF stretching exercises on range of motion and jump performance

Yüktaşir

Kaya

2009

Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies

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H-reflex changes during static stretching and two variations of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation techniques

Cited by 90 publications

References 10 publications

Reflex excitability of human soleus motoneurones during voluntary shortening or lengthening contractions.

Reflex excitability of human soleus motoneurones during voluntary shortening or lengthening contractions.

The Immediate Effects of Soft Tissue Mobilization With Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation on Glenohumeral External Rotation and Overhead Reach

Investigation into the long-term effects of static and PNF stretching exercises on range of motion and jump performance

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