Muscle Activation of Soleus and Tibialis Anterior according to Landing Strategy of Initial Contact during Descending Stairs: Comparison of Forefoot and Whole Foot

Abstract

To control the rate at which body weight drops, forefoot initiates floor contact with the limb relatively extended at each joint. However, when the knee joints could not extend enough with going down the stairs, the forefoot cannot be contact initially. The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences between forefoot and whole foot in initial contract on soleus and tibialis anterior for health young adults when descending stairs. Design: A cross-sectional observational study design. Methods: Fifteen healthy young adults participated in this study. To compare between forefoot and whole foot in initial contact when going down the stairs, this study measured muscle activation on soleus and tibialis anterior. This study used the paired t-test to analyze the collected data and compare the supporting conditions. Results: After analyzing, the muscle activation of soleus was not statistically significant difference as 25.16% at forefoot initial contact and 24.37% at whole foot initial contact when descending stairs (p>0.05). However, the muscle activation of tibialis anterior muscle was significantly difference was 49.19% at forefoot contact and 71.55% at whole foot contact. Conclusions: The results of this study was that the muscle activation of the tibialis anterior was a higher at whole foot contact than that at fore foot contact when descending stairs. This study suggests that the landing strategy of the initial contact is a beneficial effect at the forefoot contact to maintain the postural balance and the muscle performance effectively when descending stairs in individuals with healthy young adults.