Muscle Coactivation Index Improvement in Junior Handball Players by Using Propioceptive Exercises

Abstract

Ankle sprain is the most common injury in performance sports. Two of the most common residual symptoms of an ankle sprain are: the occurrence of chronic joint instability and agonist-antagonist muscle imbalances, expressed numerically by the values ​​of the muscle coactivation index. The purpose of the research was to demonstrate that the use of proprioceptive exercises leads to the improvement of the degree of chronic joint instability and of the values ​​of the muscle coactivation index. The research had a number of 22 subjects, handball players, whose age was between 15 and 16 years. The degree of joint instability was established by using the “Foot and Ankle Disability Index” Questionnaire, while the values ​​of the muscle coactivation index were calculated following the electromyographic measurements. The obtained results highlight the efficiency of the proposed proprioceptive exercise programme, the statistical significance of the obtained results (by improving the initial and final values), as well as the existence of correlations between all evaluated parameters (muscle coactivation index, number of ankle sprains and degree of joint instability). The conclusions of the research underline the efficiency of proprioceptive exercises in diminishing the degree of chronic joint instability and in improving the values ​​of the muscle coactivation index. Based on the results obtained, the research acquires an important practical value, because the proposed intervention programme has applicability in all sports sectors.