Investigation of the Effect of Foot Muscle Fatigue on the Foot Sole and Tendon Structural Properties
Condition: Healthy Participants
MeSH terms: Fatigue
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      In healthy individuals, fatigue in the foot muscles increases the load and stress on the
      feet. The extrinsic muscles of the foot, which investigators aimed to create fatigue in this
      study, are closely related anatomically and functionally to the plantar fascia and Achilles
      tendon. Considering that fatigue or weakness of the foot extrinsic muscles is an important
      risk factor for foot-ankle pathologies, it is important to reveal the relationship with the
      plantar fascia and Achilles tendon in healthy sedentary individuals and to determine
      mechanical properties of the feet of the participants to prevent possible foot injuries.
      Therefore, the aim of this study is to show the acute effects of fatigue in the extrinsic
      muscles of the foot on the viscoelastic properties of the plantar fascia and Achilles tendon.
      The study was completed with 19 people who met the inclusion criteria. Before starting the
      study, the dominant foot of the participants was determined, physical activity level was
      determined, foot posture index and foot posture were evaluated, navicular height and fall
      distance of the foot were measured, m.gastrocnemius shortness was measured with the
      Silfverskiöld test, flexibility was evaluated with a baseline sitting bench, tendon and
      fascia measurements were made with the MyotonPRO device. After the measurements, the
      participant was trained to perform the heel raise exercise. When the exercise was completed,
      the participant's foot Myoton measurements were repeated. One week later, pre-exercise Myoton
      measurement was performed, then the participant was trained for the foot adduction exercise.
      When the exercise was completed, the participant's foot Myotone measurements were repeated.
      In another week, pre-exercise Myotone measurement was performed, then heel raising and foot
      adduction exercises were performed sequentially. When the exercise was completed, the
      participant's foot Myoton measurements were repeated.
    

Detailed description: 
      This study was carried out on healthy, sedentary male individuals between the ages of 18-35.
      In the power analysis to estimate the sample size, Usgu et al. (2020), it was determined that
      there should be a minimum of 17 observations in each group, with a statistical power level of
      82.2% and a significance level of 5%. The study was completed in 3 groups in line with the
      selected exercises. Firstly, 42 young individuals were included in the study. However, after
      the preliminary evaluation, 23 individuals who did not meet the inclusion criteria and did
      not provide continuity to the study were excluded from the study. This study was completed
      with 19 healthy male individuals with a mean age of 21.37(SD 2.21) years.
    

Intervention name(s): Evaluation of Viscoelastic and mechanical properties with MyotonPRO
Intervention type(s): Device
Intervention description(s): MyotonPro™, a handheld, non-invasive and painless device, is used for non-invasive measurement of the biomechanical and viscoelastic properties of soft biological tissues such as superficial skeletal muscles, fascia, tendons and ligaments. The properties of the structures can be measured from different regions during complete rest or contraction.
Allocation: Non-Randomized
Intervention model: Crossover Assignment
Intervention model description: The same 19 people were seen 3 times to evaluate.
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Other
Keywords: viscoelastic properties; MyotonPRO; fatigue; plantar fascia; Achilles tendon