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Six Weeks of Balance Training Improves Sensorimotor Function in Individuals With Chronic Ankle Instability

2011; American Physical Therapy Association; Volume: 41; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.2519/jospt.2011.3365

1938-1344

JoEllen M. Sefton, Çoşkun Yarar, Charlie A. Hicks-Little, Jack W. Berry, Mitchell L. Cordova,

Lower Extremity Biomechanics and Pathologies

Study Design Prospective cohort study. Objective To assess the effect of 6 weeks of balance training on sensorimotor measures previously found to be deficient in participants with chronic ankle instability (CAI). Background CAI is the tendency toward repeated ankle sprains and recurring symptoms, occurring in 40% to 70% of individuals who have previously sustained a lateral ankle sprain. Recent studies have found deficits in sensorimotor measures in individuals with CAI. As balance training is a common component of ankle rehabilitation, understanding its effect on the sensorimotor system in individuals with CAI may enable us to optimize protocols to better utilize this rehabilitation method. Methods Twelve participants with CAI and 9 healthy volunteers participated. Independent variables were group (CAI, control) and time (pretraining, posttraining). Participants with CAI who completed a 6-week balance training program and healthy controls who did not get any training were pretested and posttested at the beginning and at the end of 6 weeks. Results The individuals in the CAI group who performed balance training demonstrated better performance than control participants on baseline-adjusted posttraining measures of dynamic balance in the anterior medial (P = .021), medial (P = .048), and posterior medial directions (P = .030); motoneuron pool excitability Hmax/Mmax ratio (P = .044) and single-limb presynaptic inhibition (P = .012); and joint position sense inversion variable error (P = .017). It may be of note that no systematic differences were detected for static balance or plantar flexion joint position sense tasks. Conclusions After 6 weeks of balance training, individuals with CAI demonstrated enhanced dynamic balance, inversion joint position sense, and changes in motoneuron pool excitability compared to healthy controls who did not train. Level of Evidence Therapy, level 2b. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2011;41(2):81–89, Epub 10 November 2010. doi:10.2519/jospt.2011.3365