Quantifying the magnitude of torque physiotherapists apply when stretching the hamstring muscles of people with spinal cord injury11No commercial party having a direct financial interest in the results of the research supporting this article has or will confer a benefit upon the author(s) or upon any organization with which the author(s) is/are associated.Reprints are not available.

Harvey, L A; McQuade, Lea; Hawthorne, Scott; Byak, Adrian

doi:10.1016/s0003-9993(03)00131-x

Cited by 20 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 13 publications

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“…However, a few studies have addressed the issue during stretching in human subjects with SCI. Harvey et al, quantified the torque applied during hamstring stretch by twelve different PTs 31 . The range of torque varied substantially with a median in the range of 30–68 N*m, while some therapists applied over 100 N*m. If we compare torques about the hip for human and rat based strictly on body weight (average weight of subjects from Harvey’s study – 73 kg, and average weight of the rats in our study - .25 kg) the ratio would approximately be 290:1.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Electromyographic patterns of the rat hindlimb in response to muscle stretch after spinal cord injury

et al. 2018

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Study Design Experimental Study Objectives To characterize the specific hindlimb electromyographic (EMG) patterns in response to muscle stretch and to measure the applied forces during stretching in the rat model of moderate SCI. Setting Kentucky Spinal Cord Injury Research Center, Louisville, KY, USA Methods Female Sprague Dawley rats (n=4) were instrumented for telemetry-based EMG recording (right Rectus Femoris and Biceps Femoris) and received a moderate T10 spinal cord injury (SCI). The major hindlimb muscle groups were stretched using our clinically modeled protocol. The EMG responses were recorded biweekly for 8 weeks. The forces applied during stretching were measured using a custom-designed glove. Locomotor function was assessed using the BBB Open Field Locomotor Scale, 3D kinematics and gait analysis. Results Three main EMG patterns in response to stretch were identified: clonic-like, air-stepping and spasms. Torques applied during stretching ranged from 0.8–6 N*cm, and did not change significantly over the weeks of stretching. Two stretching sessions a week did not result in a significant disruption to locomotor function. Conclusions Stretching evokes EMG patterns in rats similar to those reported in humans including clonus and spasms. The torques used during stretching are comparable, based on the ratio of torque to body weight, to the few previously published studies that measured the forces and/or torques applied by physical therapists when stretching patients. Future studies are warranted to fully explore the impact of muscle stretch on spinal cord function after injury. Sponsorship DoD, KSCHIRT, NIH

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%