Focal Vibration on the Performance of Amateur Athletes

NCT ID: NCT05757661

Last Updated: 2023-03-07

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: UNKNOWN
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 70 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2023-03-01
• Study Completion Date: 2023-04-01

Brief Summary

Focal vibration is an adjustable instrument, which has the ability to apply vibration to a specific point at different hertz, powers and rhythms. The use of general or focused vibration is not new in the rehabilitation or sports field. Vibration is intended to stimulate neuromuscular uses to produce involuntary and additional contractions of muscle tissue, indirectly causing an increase in strength or muscle mass , improved fall prevention, mobility and bone consolidation. This type of device has been used both in athletes and in patients with chronic diseases or in intensive care units. There are studies that use vibration in critically ill patients because it is a safe and feasible intervention for dependent patients. One of the advantages of focal vibration is that it can be used in both unloading and loading, which allows a wide range of adaptation to each patient, even simultaneously during a training activity.

The aim of the present study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a focal vibration treatment on strength, jumping and running speed in national federated athletes who perform sprinting and jumping in their sports practice.

A sample will be recruited during the months of April to September, estimating a sample of 70 total subjects (35 subjects in the vibration group and 35 subjects in the vibration placebo group).

Patients will receive a single treatment and assessments will be performed on the same day.

The focal vibration group will receive a 30-minute quadriceps intervention. 3 channels will be used on the muscle bellies of the rectus anterior, vastus internus and vastus externus. The vibration program configuration will be in an automatic mode of 10 seconds of vibration 3 seconds of rest to avoid mechanoreceptor coupling. The frequency used will be between 60 Hz to 150 Hz with a power of 80%. The placebo group will perform the same treatment as the intervention group but without the focal vibration head contacting the skin (placebo). A sufficient space will be left between the head and the headgear so that the vibration does not touch the skin as shown in previous studies.

A V-Plus machine (Wintecare S.A.) will be used for the vibration treatment. For the assessment measurements, a surface electromyograph, a force measurement dynamometer, the MyJump2 application for jump assessment and two photoelectric cells for sprint measurement will be used.

Detailed Description

Focal vibration is an adjustable instrument, which has the ability to apply vibration to a specific point at different hertz, powers and rhythms. The use of general or focused vibration is not new in the rehabilitation or sports field. Vibration is intended to stimulate neuromuscular uses to produce involuntary and additional contractions of muscle tissue, indirectly causing an increase in strength or muscle mass , improved fall prevention, mobility and bone consolidation. This type of device has been used both in athletes and in patients with chronic diseases or in intensive care units. There are studies that use vibration in critically ill patients because it is a safe and feasible intervention for dependent patients. One of the advantages of focal vibration is that it can be used in both unloading and loading, which allows a wide range of adaptation to each patient, even simultaneously during a training activity.

As mentioned above, focal vibration has had good results in increasing muscle mass; however, there is no study that has assessed whether focal vibration generates immediate improvements in the performance of functional tests such as jumping, maximum strength or running speed.

Different studies have observed improved activation of muscle fibers after applying global and/or focal vibration; however, it is not known whether activation is maintained in more functional gestures that require maximum effort (such as jumping or sprinting) in trained individuals.

The aim of the present study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a focal vibration treatment on strength, jumping and running speed in national federated athletes who perform sprinting and jumping in their sports practice.

A sample will be recruited during the months of April to September, estimating a sample of 70 total subjects (35 subjects in the vibration group and 35 subjects in the vibration placebo group).

Patients will receive a single treatment and assessments will be performed on the same day.

The focal vibration group will receive a 30-minute quadriceps intervention. 3 channels will be used on the muscle bellies of the rectus anterior, vastus internus and vastus externus. The vibration program configuration will be in an automatic mode of 10 seconds of vibration 3 seconds of rest to avoid mechanoreceptor coupling. The frequency used will be between 60 Hz to 150 Hz with a power of 80%. The placebo group will perform the same treatment as the intervention group but without the focal vibration head contacting the skin (placebo). A sufficient space will be left between the head and the headgear so that the vibration does not touch the skin as shown in previous studies.

A V-Plus machine (Wintecare S.A.) will be used for the vibration treatment. For the assessment measurements, a surface electromyograph, a force measurement dynamometer, the MyJump2 application for jump assessment and two photoelectric cells for sprint measurement will be used.

Conditions

Vibration; Exposure; Sports Physical Therapy

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: DOUBLE

Study Groups

Focal Vibration Group

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Focal Vibration

Intervention Type: OTHER

A single 30-minute focal vibration procedure will be performed on both quadriceps with the V-Plus Wintecare® machine.

Three channels will be used on the muscle bellies of the rectus anterior, vastus internus and vastus externus. The positioning of the vibration heads will be done with straps designed by the manufacturer to keep the vibration focus stable on the muscle belly.

The configuration of the vibration program will be in an automatic mode of 10 seconds of vibration and 3 seconds of rest to avoid the coupling of the mechanoreceptors. The frequency used will be between 60 Hz to 150 Hz with a power of 80%.

Sham Group

Group Type: SHAM_COMPARATOR

Sham Group

Intervention Type: OTHER

The same procedure of the intervention group will be performed but without the focal vibration head contacting the skin (sham). A sufficient space will be left between the head and the headgear so that the vibration does not touch the skin.

Interventions

Focal Vibration

A single 30-minute focal vibration procedure will be performed on both quadriceps with the V-Plus Wintecare® machine.

Three channels will be used on the muscle bellies of the rectus anterior, vastus internus and vastus externus. The positioning of the vibration heads will be done with straps designed by the manufacturer to keep the vibration focus stable on the muscle belly.

The configuration of the vibration program will be in an automatic mode of 10 seconds of vibration and 3 seconds of rest to avoid the coupling of the mechanoreceptors. The frequency used will be between 60 Hz to 150 Hz with a power of 80%.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Sham Group

The same procedure of the intervention group will be performed but without the focal vibration head contacting the skin (sham). A sufficient space will be left between the head and the headgear so that the vibration does not touch the skin.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Athletes between 18 and 30 years of age (athletics and field sports such as soccer, basketball, rugby... that may involve sprinting) federated and competing in university or national amateur leagues that perform sprinting and jumping in their sports practice.
• Active participation in regional, national or international competitions.
• Study participants must have signed the informed consent form in order to evaluate their inclusion in the study.

Exclusion Criteria

• Volunteers who have suffered a sports injury during the last two months or are unable to perform physical activity.
• Not understanding the information provided by the therapist.
• Participate in other research studies.
• Being under a pharmacological medical treatment that may interfere with the measures, such as treatment with anticonvulsants, antidepressants, etc.

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 50 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

Universitat Internacional de Catalunya

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Jacobo Rodríguez Sanz

Principal investigator

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Locations

Universitat Internacional de Catalunya

Sant Cugat del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain

Site Status: RECRUITING

Countries

Spain

Facility Contacts

Albert Pérez-Bellmunt, PhD

Role: primary

aperez@uic.es

636817297

Other Identifiers

FIS-2022-05

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id