Ultrasound and prolonged long duration stretching increase triceps surae muscle extensibility more than identical stretching alone

A randomized, counterbalanced 2x2x5 repeated measures design.

To compare the changes in triceps surae extensibility after treatments of ultrasound and prolonged long duration stretching, and stretching alone.

A sample of 30 healthy college age male volunteers with the mean age of 24.13 years participated in the study. Subjects were randomly grouped into ultrasound and static stretching (A), and only static stretching(B), each group includes 15 subjects. The testing occurred over a 1 week period with each subject receiving 1 treatment a day for 5 consecutive days. All of the subjects also had the range of motion measured 72 hours after the last treatment to measure the lasting effect of each treatment. The static stretch and ultrasound combined treatment consisted of subjects lying prone while receiving ultrasound for first 7 minutes of 10 minutes of static stretch for plantar flexors with 1/3 of body weight. The control treatment consisted of the subjects lying prone to receive10 minutes of static stretch with 1/3 of body weight.

Mean±SD increase in active dorsiflexion ROM after 5-days was 9.14º±1º for group A and 7.46º±1.1º for group B. The follow up measurement (72-hours later) was compared to the last measurement taken i.e. after the 5^th day treatment session. It was found that ROM lost in group A was 2.4º and group B had lost 4.13º.

After 5-days of continuous ultrasound and prolonged long duration stretching, ankle dorsiflexion ROM increased more than prolonged long duration stretching alone.