Effects of Ankle Swelling on Dynamic Postural Control in Individuals with Chronic Ankle Instability

Authors

Isaiah K. Githuka, Brigham Young UniversityFollow
Hyunwook Lee, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillFollow
Seunguk Han, Pusan National UniversityFollow
Minsub Oh, Brigham Young UniversityFollow
Jon Tyson Hopkins, Brigham Young UniversityFollow

Abstract

Chronic ankle instability (CAI) individuals have ankle swelling as a residual symptom. Joint swelling following musculoskeletal injuries inhibits full neural activation of muscles, known as arthrogenic muscle inhibition. However, little is known about the effects of ankle swelling on dynamic postural control in CAI individuals. PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of ankle swelling on dynamic postural control in CAI individuals. METHODS: A total of 45 participants were recruited from a university population: 15 CAI individuals with swelling (swelling), 15 CAI individuals without swelling (non-swelling), and 15 healthy controls (control). All participants were measured ankle swelling using a figure 8 ankle girth measurement by one instructor. CAI participants were classified into swelling and non-swelling groups if there was a swelling difference of at least 0.5 cm between injured and uninjured ankles. For the dynamic postural control tasks, participants completed 3 trials of maximum jump using Vertec (Power System, TN). They stood 70 cm away from the center of an in-ground force plate (1000Hz, AMTI, Watertown, MA) and jumped with both legs, aiming to reach a target bar set at 50% of their maximum jump height using one hand. After jumping, they landed on the center of the force plate on the involved leg, trying to stabilize quickly and hold their single-leg position for 3 seconds. All participants performed 3 successful trials of single-leg hop-to-stabilization for 3 seconds each without touching the ground with the contralateral leg and without losing balance. One way analysis of variance was used to analyze the differences between groups for dynamic postural control. RESULTS: The swelling group exhibited worse dynamic postural control in vertical stability index and dynamic postural stability index compared to the non-swelling (p=0.017, p=0.015) and control (p=0.045 and p=0.037) groups. The non-swelling group showed similar dynamic postural control to the control group. CONCLUSION: Ankle swelling contributes to altered neuromuscular control, resulting in worse dynamic postural control in CAI individuals. Future studies should address whether these alterations lead to increased risk of re-injury and joint disease.

Recommended Citation

Githuka, Isaiah K.; Lee, Hyunwook; Han, Seunguk; Oh, Minsub; and Hopkins, Jon Tyson (2024) "Effects of Ankle Swelling on Dynamic Postural Control in Individuals with Chronic Ankle Instability," International Journal of Exercise Science: Conference Proceedings: Vol. 14: Iss. 4, Article 28.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/ijesab/vol14/iss4/28