• Journal of Korean Physical Therapy Science
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.59-64
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• 2011

Purpose : The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of the stretching of the calf muscles on foot pressure and contact area in young adult. Participants stood on a wedge board that was sloped between 15~25 degree for 15min. After stretching participants stood quietly on force plate, result was recorded. Participants stood on a force plate for 1 min in eye closed condition, and them the foot pressure and area was recorded. The following variables were calculated off-line: anterior and posterior foot pressure and contact area, medial and lateral foot pressure and contact area. Results showed that anterior pressure change due to stretch, but mediolateral was not significant. This result suggested that stretching of the calf muscle has the effect of increasing anterior pressure by flexibility change on calf muscle, so this effects might be effective intervention for reduce of serious problem to neurologic patients in therapy session.

• Journal of International Academy of Physical Therapy Research
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.919-924
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• 2016

In this study, 20 men and women in their 20s were divided into a footboard passive stretching group and a manual passive stretching group. After stretching was applied to the soleus for 5 weeks, a comparative analysis was performed on the range of motion(ROM) of the ankle joint to determine changes in the flexibility of the soleus. Both the footboard stretching group and manual stretching group first performed stretching for 15 sec, followed by a 10-sec break. One set consisted of performing the above process twice consecutively, and each group had to perform five sets in total. A goniometer was used as a measuring instrument. The results of the experiment were analyzed using a nonparametric analysis, Wilcoxon signed rank test, and Mann-Whitney test. SPSS WIN 18.0 was employed for the statistical analysis. In terms of the comparison of the flexibility before and after the experiment according to the different interventions, the application of footboard stretching to the soleus for 5 weeks resulted in $3.2^{\circ}$ right dorsiflexion (p=.009), $6.98^{\circ}$ right plantar flexion(p=.008), $4.14^{\circ}$ left dorsiflexion(p=.005), and $10.97^{\circ}$ left plantar flexion(p=.007), which were all statistically significant increases. The application of manual stretching led to $6.04^{\circ}$ right dorsiflexion(p=.005), $12.14^{\circ}$ right plantar flexion(p=.005), $7.00^{\circ}$ left dorsiflexion (p=.008), and $16.38^{\circ}$ left plantar flexion(p=.005). Therefore, both footboard stretching and manual stretching were effective in enhancing the flexibility of the soleus. However, statistically significant larger increases in the ROM of the ankle joint were observed in the manual stretching group.