Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2006

Abstract

Context: Clinicians commonly attempt to facilitate vastus medialis oblique (VMO) activity by instructing patients to squeeze a ball between their knees during squatting exercises.
Objective: To determine whether VMO activation amplitude and the VMO to vastus lateralis (VL) activation ratio (VMO:VL) were altered when performing active hip adduction during a dynamic squat exercise.
Design: Single test session.
Participants: Fifteen healthy subjects, with no history of knee pain, volunteered for this study.
Intervention: Surface EMG of the VMO, VL, and hip adductor (ADD) muscles were recorded while subjects performed 10 consecutive squats against their body weight through a range of 0° to 90° of knee flexion. Subjects performed the squat exercises during two different conditions: (1) active hip adduction and (2) no hip adduction.
Main Outcome Measures: Average VMO EMG amplitude and VMO:VL ratio were determined during the knee flexion (0° to 90°) and knee extension (90° to 0°) phases of the squat exercise.
Results: Active hip adduction did not significantly change VMO amplitude or VMO:VL ratio during the knee flexion or knee extension phases of the dynamic squat exercise.
Conclusions: Based on these results, we conclude that VMO amplitude and the VMO: VL ratio are not influenced by performing active hip adduction during a dynamic squat exercise in healthy subjects.
Key words: knee, electromyography, squat

Comments

Originally published in the Journal of Sport Rehabilitation, 2006, 15:195-205.

http://journals.humankinetics.com/jsr

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