Article

Stretching of fascia is an important component of manual and movement
therapies. We previously showed that in pigs, a unilateral thoracolumbar fascia
injury combined with movement restriction (hobble) produced contralateral loss of
fascia mobility (shear strain during passive trunk flexion measured with
ultrasound) similar to findings in human subjects with chronic low back pain. We
now tested whether such abnormalities could be reversed by removing the hobble
with or without daily stretching for 1 mo. DESIGN:
Thirty pigs were randomized to
control, injury, or injury + hobble for 8 wks. The hobble restricted hip
extension ipsilateral to the injury. At week 8, the injury + hobble group was
subdivided into continued hobble, removed hobble, and removed hobble + stretching
(passively extending the hip for 10 min daily). RESULTS: Removing hobbles
restored normal gait speed but did not restore fascia mobility. Daily passive
stretching was not superior to removing hobbles, as there was no significant
improvement in fascia mobility with either treatment group (removed hobble or
stretching). CONCLUSIONS: Reduced fascia mobility in response to injury and
movement restriction worsens over time and persists even when movement is
restored. Reversing fascia abnormalities may require either longer than 1 mo or a
different treatment "dose" or modality.

Langue : ANGLAIS