Study on three-dimensional kinematics and electromyography of ACL deficient knee participants wearing a functional knee brace during running

Abstract

This investigation examined the muscular activity and 3D knee joint kinematic changes of anterior cruciate ligament-deficient (ACLD) participants in the involved leg under bracing condition during running. Different adaptation strategies have been found between patients who can cope with the injury and patients who cannot. One of the expected changes can be the muscle activation characteristic of the injured knee during strenuous activity with and without a functional knee brace. Three-dimensional kinematic and electromyographical (EMG) data were collected from 11 participants for 10 consecutive gait cycles during running on a treadmill under both braced and unbraced conditions. Participants were administered the "Knee Outcome Survey Activities of Daily Living Scale" to distinguish functional and non-functional candidates. No significant differences on 3D kinematics and EMG data were noted between functional and non-functional participants, thus data analysis focused on comparisons of bracing conditions for one combined group. Bracing significantly reduced total range of motion in the frontal and transverse planes (P<0.05). Muscle activity at heel-strike showed a consistent trend to increase for the hamstrings and decrease for the quadriceps under the braced condition when compared to the unbraced condition. Our findings indicate that bracing the ACLD knee alters the kinematics of the injured leg while running. Tendencies toward reductions in quadriceps and increases in hamstrings activity at heel-strike indicate that bracing might have resulted in added stability of the injured knee. The adaptations to bracing found in this preliminary study further support the potential mechanical and proprioceptive contributions of the functional knee brace to protect the ACLD knee.

Parameters of kinaesthesis during gaits derived from an ultrasound-based measuring system

“…From both results it can be established that the reiterative accuracy of motion on a non-firm plate is failing. The trend of these results is similar to the trend of gait parameters measured after injury [4,5], in elderly people [6,7] or in cases of arthritis [8,9].…”

The effect of proprioceptive knee bracing on knee stability during three different sport related movement tasks in healthy subjects and the implications to the management of Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injuries

“…However, proprioception has also been identified as an important mechanism in managing knee instability and ACL injuries [15]. The skin contact from bracing could provide more afferent information to the brain due to cutaneous sensory stimulation and thereby improve neuromuscular control of the knee joint [16].…”

Subject-Specific Computational Prediction of the Effects of Elastic Compression in the Calf

“…Several studies [28,29,30] showed that muscle activation is modified by wearing CS. Indeed, skin receptors are involved not only in proprioceptive effects, through Pacini and Rufini mechanoreceptors [31].…”