Thermal monitoring of the Achilles tendon during static and dynamic exercise associated with the application of light therapy

Not Applicable

• Conditions: Tendinopathy; Calcaneal Tendon; Exercise Therapy; E01.370.350.800

• Registration Number: RBR-2ft3bxw
• Lead Sponsor: niversidade Federal da Paraíba

Brief Summary

Introduction: Prior knowledge of physiological and thermal adaptations of the tendon to different types of exercise, as well as its association with photobiomodulation (PBM) are essential for establishing effective protocols for the prevention and treatment of calcaneal tendinopathies. Objective: To analyze the thermal pattern of the skin over the Achilles Tendon (CT) of healthy individuals submitted to FBM in association with isometric and isotonic exercises. Method: This is an experimental, randomized, single-blind study. The sample consisted of 32 healthy, physically active volunteers, equally distributed between two independent groups (n= 16 subjects, eight men and eight women), submitted to evaluation by thermographic video; assessment of isometric muscle strength of the triceps surae; subjective perception of effort and pain. The experiment consisted of performing two different exercise protocols (1. Isometric and 2. Isotonic) of the sural triceps performed only by the dominant limb, with the contralateral limb serving as a control. Preceded by the application of FBM (real and sham) using a total energy dose of 20.3 J distributed in four points on the CT, with a washout of one week between the two interventions. Data were processed using SPSS version 20.0, adopting a significance level of 5% and a confidence interval of 95%. A paired t test was used to compare the pre and post strength measurements and an Anova of repeated measures was applied to compare the mean temperatures over the evaluation time. Pain and perceived exertion were compared using the Man Whitney test and partial eta (?2) was used to interpret the effect size. Results: Significant interactions were verified in the time x exercise analysis (p=0.001), in which the eccentric group presented higher temperatures than the isometric group during the execution of the exercise protocol. Strength measurements showed good reproducibility (ICC=0.859; p=0.001) and prior application of FBM did not cause significant changes. The isotonic group had a greater perception of exertion (p=0.001) and pain (p=0.001) than the isometric group. Conclusions: Isotonic exercise presents a greater thermal amplitude over the exercised CT, and may act in a preventive way and in the rehabilitation of tendinopathies. On the other hand, isometric exercise can be indicated in the early stages of rehabilitation of tendon ruptures, as it can be better tolerated since they present less perceived exertion and discomfort. FBM at the dose applied in this study did not cause immediate changes in the subjects' muscle strength.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Results First Posted: 1900-01-01
• Study Completion: 2022-08-31
• Study Start: 2023-03-30
• Last Update Posted: 29 May 2023

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: Data analysis completed
• Sex: Not specified
• Target Recruitment: Not specified

Inclusion Criteria

Subjects of both genders; healthy; aged between 18 and 35 years; physically active according to the International Physical Activity Questionnaire classification; who do not have cardiorespiratory, osteomioarticular or neurological diseases that affect the ability to exercise; do not have tendinopathies, ruptures or history of Calcaneal Tendon surgeries; not be diabetic, hypertensive or have varicose veins or arterial and vascular diseases in the calf region

Exclusion Criteria

Volunteers who in the evaluation report pain on palpation of the calcaneal tension; those who were unable to complete the exercise protocol; those who during the intervention period present some systemic disease; not perform any of the pre-established assessments in the study

Study & Design

• Study Type: Intervention
• Study Design: Not specified