Abstract
Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the effects of passive stretching of the pectoralis major muscle on pulmonary functions.
 Methods: The participants were 24 male university students. They were divided randomly into the experimental group (n = 12) and the control group (n = 12). They did not have any other of neurological, muscular, and cardiopulmonary dysfunctions. A digital pulmonary function measuring device (Pony FX, COSMED Inc., Italy) was used to test pulmonary functions. The experimental group performed three sets of passive stretching on the pectoralis major muscle. One set included three bouts of passive stretching. The control group did not perform any other exercise. After passive stretching, pulmonary functions were measured again. SPSSWIN (ver 27.0) package program was used to analyze data.
 Results: The forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) of maximal effort vital capacity (MEVC), and maximal voluntary ventilation (MVV) were significantly improved in the experimental group after passive stretching. However, no change was observed in the control group. The changes in FVC, FEV1, and MVV were higher in the experimental group than in the control group.
 Conclusion: The results show that passive stretching of the pectoralis major muscle can improve pulmonary function parameters, namely, MEVC and MVV.
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