Improvement In Hamstring Flexibility Using Warm Underwater Jetted Massage As An Adjunct To Static Stretching.

Abstract

Many studies have established the efficacy of adjunctive heat with stretching to improve flexibility, however very little has been reported on the use of massage as an adjunctive modality, with or without adjunctive heat. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of warm underwater jetted massage on hamstring flexibility. Design: Single-blind, randomized repeated measures design. METHODS: 37 subjects (21 male, 16 female; mean age 22 ± 2.5) completed this study. Subjects were recreationally active college students who exhibited "tight" hamstrings, as defined for the purposes of this study. Subjects were tested for baseline flexibility and then randomly assigned to one of four groups: A control group (C) (3 males 5 females); massage and stretch group (MS) (4 males, 5 females); massage only group (M) (8 males, 2 females); and a stretch only group (5 males, 5 females). Massage was implemented using a Hydroworx® thermal plunge and a special underwater massage hose with the water at 105° F. Massage duration was 5-minutes and static stretches were performed 5 times for 30-seconds each. Subjects underwent each treatment 5 x wk for 2 weeks. Hamstring flexibility was measured by a blinded researcher using a passive knee extension test each week prior to and following treatment. RESULTS: At baseline, there was no statistical difference between groups (p >.375). For the entire 2-week treatment, all three treatment groups had significant increases in flexibility (M: p <.005, MS: p <.001 and S: p <.001), when compared to the control. No differences in gender distribution according to group existed (χηI σθυαρεδ =3.99, p =.2621)CONCLUSION: The addition of warm underwater jetted massage to a stretching program does not demonstrate sufficient efficacy over static stretching alone to justify the extra time it would take to clinically apply this modality.