A Proposal for Lower-Extremity Rehabilitation Based on Preliminary Observation on the Abnormal Co-contraction Patterns of Ankle Muscles in Post-stroke Patients

Abstract

Purpose: This study was aimed to investigate the differences in the co-contraction index of ankle muscles’ activities and proposed the rehabilitation methods in terms of special physical education based on the clinical findings. Methods: A total of ten participants (5 stroke patients and 5 normal adults) were participated in this study. Their two ankle muscles (tibialis anterior and gastrocnemius muscles) were measured by electromyography (EMG) during the gait cycle and then, the muscle activities were calculated as a co-contraction index (CCI). Finally, the indexes between stroke patients and normal adults were compared. Results: As a result, CCI during the stance phase in the gait cycle was significantly higher in stroke patients than normal adults (p=.047). In addition, each group showed a significant difference in CCI between the stance and swing phase through within-group analysis (p=.043). Conclusion: In this study, stroke patients showed a higher CCI during the gait cycle, especially, in the stance phase. In conclusion, when considering the higher CCI would provide double-sidedness; 1) a demerit is the higher CCI would decrease in the mobility of ankle joint, whereas, 2) a merit is to increase in the stability of the ankle joint to protect fall-down, I proposed that as a lower-extremity rehabilitation method, sports activity, and aerobic exercise, using an online virtual reality technology will be necessary to ensure the safety of sports game as well as the enjoyment to maximize the quality of post-stroke life. Therefore, professionals in the field of special physical education should actively enlarge their education and development skills to the field of new biotechnology.