Test-retest Reliability and Agreement of Trunk Muscle Activation in Pain-free Persons
NCT ID: NCT06975202
Last Updated: 2025-05-16
Study Results
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Basic Information
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RECRUITING
18 participants
OBSERVATIONAL
2024-04-02
2025-10-15
Brief Summary
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Detailed Description
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A limited number of studies have investigated the reliability and agreement of trunk muscle activation during dynamic (functional) tasks. Moreover, all these studies used simple discrete outcomes such as mean or peak amplitude. An important limitation is that these single zero-dimensional outcome values ignore the temporal aspects of dynamic tasks. As such, potentially relevant time-specific characteristics of muscle activation might be missed. A comprehensive reliability analysis of curve data (i.e., one-dimensional data) that considers the temporal timeframe is therefore required. An overview of reliability analyses of curve data can be found in Pini et al. This paper concluded that integrated pointwise indices can be recommended. Recently, this innovative analysis was used in biomechanical studies investigating the kinematics and kinetics during jump landing. However, to the best of our knowledge, integrated pointwise indices have not been used to determine reliability and agreement of muscle activation during functional tasks.
The lumbar multifidus has received extensive attention over the past 25 years. The multifidus muscle consists of deep and short fibers that overlay up to 2 segments (i.e., deep multifidus) and more superficial and longer fibers that cross up to 5 segments (i.e., superficial multifidus). As a result of their anatomy, the deep multifidus (DM) predominantly provides segmental stabilization through compressive forces, while the superficial multifidus (SM) mainly generate lumbar movement (i.e., extension, lateral bending, and rotation). Previous studies showed that the distinction between DM and SM activation is especially important for persons with low back pain. Although the results in persons with low back pain vary, the current literature shows a trend towards an overall reduced activation of the DM, while the activation of the SM is often augmented. As such, a clinical test that assesses voluntary DM activation has been proposed and specific motor control therapy that targets the DM has been shown to reduce pain and disability in patients with low back pain. Fine-wire electromyography (EMG) is the only technique that is able to record selective deep muscle activation during dynamic functional tasks, as opposed to other techniques such as surface EMG. However, reliability studies that use fine-wire EMG to measure selective DM and SM activation during functional tasks are currently lacking.
Therefore, this study aims to investigate test-retest reliability and agreement of trunk muscle activation measured with surface and fine-wire EMG during functional tasks in pain-free persons.
Conditions
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Study Design
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CASE_ONLY
CROSS_SECTIONAL
Study Groups
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Pain-free persons
Pain-free persons
No intervention
No intervention
Interventions
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No intervention
No intervention
Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria
Exclusion Criteria
* Patients with serious underlying conditions (e.g., multiple sclerosis)
* Previous spinal surgery
* Persons with any type of blood clotting disorder
* Persons with upper-limb complaints that prevent them from exerting (maximum) force with their arms or hands.
18 Years
65 Years
ALL
Yes
Sponsors
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VZW Educatieve Lichaamsbeweging
UNKNOWN
University Ghent
OTHER
Responsible Party
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Principal Investigators
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Lieven Danneels, Professor
Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
University Ghent
Locations
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Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences
Ghent, , Belgium
Countries
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Central Contacts
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Facility Contacts
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References
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Moseley GL, Hodges PW, Gandevia SC. External perturbation of the trunk in standing humans differentially activates components of the medial back muscles. J Physiol. 2003 Mar 1;547(Pt 2):581-7. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.2002.024950. Epub 2002 Dec 20.
MacDonald D, Moseley GL, Hodges PW. People with recurrent low back pain respond differently to trunk loading despite remission from symptoms. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2010 Apr 1;35(7):818-24. doi: 10.1097/BRS.0b013e3181bc98f1.
Schelin L, Pini A, Markstrom JL, Hager CK. Test-retest reliability of entire time-series data from hip, knee and ankle kinematics and kinetics during one-leg hops for distance: Analyses using integrated pointwise indices. J Biomech. 2021 Jul 19;124:110546. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2021.110546. Epub 2021 Jun 12.
Pini A, Markstrom JL, Schelin L. Test-retest reliability measures for curve data: an overview with recommendations and supplementary code. Sports Biomech. 2022 Feb;21(2):179-200. doi: 10.1080/14763141.2019.1655089. Epub 2019 Oct 3.
Wildenbeest MH, Kiers H, Tuijt M, van Dieen JH. Reliability of measures to characterize lumbar movement patterns, in repeated seated reaching, in a mixed group of participants with and without low-back pain: A test-retest, within- and between session. J Biomech. 2021 May 24;121:110435. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2021.110435. Epub 2021 Apr 15.
Matheve T, Hodges P, Danneels L. The Role of Back Muscle Dysfunctions in Chronic Low Back Pain: State-of-the-Art and Clinical Implications. J Clin Med. 2023 Aug 24;12(17):5510. doi: 10.3390/jcm12175510.
Hodges PW, Danneels L. Changes in Structure and Function of the Back Muscles in Low Back Pain: Different Time Points, Observations, and Mechanisms. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2019 Jun;49(6):464-476. doi: 10.2519/jospt.2019.8827.
Hebert JJ, Koppenhaver SL, Teyhen DS, Walker BF, Fritz JM. The evaluation of lumbar multifidus muscle function via palpation: reliability and validity of a new clinical test. Spine J. 2015 Jun 1;15(6):1196-202. doi: 10.1016/j.spinee.2013.08.056. Epub 2013 Oct 4.
Other Identifiers
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B6702022000426
Identifier Type: -
Identifier Source: org_study_id
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