Effects of chronic stretching program in the calcaneal tendon strain by ultrasound
Abstract
Introduction and Purpose: The mechanical properties of Achilles tendon can change when submitted to chronic interventions. However, the effects on this tendon stress due to a chronic stretching training are still not clear. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of a 10-week stretching program on the Achilles tendon stress Methods: 14 subjects were assigned to a stretching (n=8) and a control group (n=6).The stretching protocol was applied during 10 weeks (total of 45 sessions), using two sets of 30 seconds of two different exercises. The maximum stress (maximum force/cross-sectional area (CSA)) was estimated using measurements of tendon CSA in ultrasoundimages obtained during passive dorsiflexion in an isokinetic dynamometer. Results: The maximum dorsiflexion angle increased from 26.12 ± 6.13° to 28.87 ± 7.32° (p=0.03) in the stretching group. All other variables (maximum passive torque, maximum passive fore, CSA and maximum tension) presented no significant changes. Discussion: The increase in the maximum dorsiflexion angle indicates structural adaptations because no torque, force and stress increase was observed, which would other structural adaptationsor that, the CSA increase associated with the amplitude gain was relatively small. Conclusion: It is suggested that structural adaptations related to the amplitude increase are not associated to the tendon CSA. Otherwise, the complex methodology used to measure CSA may hide small adaptations.
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