Which type of repetitive muscle contractions induce a greater acute impairment of position sense?

Fortier, Sylvie (2007) Which type of repetitive muscle contractions induce a greater acute impairment of position sense? Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine which type of repetitive muscle contractions induces a greater acute impairment of elbow position sense. Eleven male subjects participating in the study underwent (i) a fatigue task (FT) consisting of 9 sets of 10 voluntary isometric, concentric, or eccentric contractions randomly performed on three separate sessions, and (ii) pre- and post-treatment maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVC). Prior to and between sets of FT, a proprioception task (PT) consisting of matching the right arm to the left reference arm was performed at three different target angular positions (70°, 110° and 150°). Each set was immediately followed by 3 PT and 1 minute rest. The statistical analysis revealed that post-treatment MVCs were significantly decreased compared to pre-treatment MVC in all conditions with a greater drop following the eccentric session. Despite this greater drop, position sense was only significantly affected by the concentric exercise session. In addition, matching errors tended to be larger at 110° compared to the other angles. The results showed that concentric muscle contractions impaired position sense in the midrange angle of the elbow joint and this should be taken into consideration when designing proprioception rehabilitation programs.

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