SAĞLIKLI BİREYLERDE EL BİLEĞİ PROPRİOSEPTİF EGZERSİZ EĞİTİMİNİN MOTOR PERFORMANS PARAMETRELERİNE ETKİSİNİN ARAŞTIRILMASI

Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of proprioceptive exercise training, used in addition to traditional upper extremity exercises, on wrist joint position sense (JPS) (goniometer), electrical activation level of forearm muscles (surface electromyography-EMG), forearm muscle strength (dynamometer), reaction time (Nelson Hand Reaction Test), weight transfer tolerance (analog scale) and upper extremity functional performance (upper extremity Y balance test, UEP) before and after exercise training in healthy individuals. EMG evaluation was performed during isotonic wrist movement (IWM), grip and weight bearing tolerance (WBT). Additionally, pain (Visual Analog Scale), hypermobility (Beighton Hypermobility Assessment) and functional status (Q-DASH) were assessed to determine the suitability of the participants for the study. A total of 48 individuals aged 18-30 were included in the study and 7 of them were excluded. Participants were divided into two groups: proprioception group (PG) (n=21) and control group (CG) (n=20). Both groups received supervised exercise training with 10- minute warm-up period and 30-minute exercise sessions twice a week for 6 weeks. Participants were also followed up with daily home exercises. After training, improvements were observed in reaction time (RT), muscle strength (MS), WBT and UEP in both groups (p<0.05), but no differences were found between groups (p>0.05). A significant improvement in JPS was observed in favor of PG (p<0.05). The training increased activation levels for groups (p<0.05). EMG recordings showed the highest to lowest activation levels during grip, WBT and isotonic movement, respectively. In EMG analysis, co-contraction ratio was highest in WBT. In conclusion, proprioceptive training didn’t provide additional benefits in RT, MS, WBT and UEP compared to the CG. The progression in proprioceptive training could be IWM, WBT and grip, and if stabilization is targeted, WBT exercises may enhance effectiveness of treatment.