Effect of Ankle Splinting on Vascular Function in Aging
| Status: | Completed |
|---|---|
| Conditions: | Healthy Studies |
| Therapuetic Areas: | Other |
| Healthy: | No |
| Age Range: | 60 - 79 |
| Updated: | 4/17/2018 |
| Start Date: | May 2014 |
| End Date: | April 10, 2015 |
Ankle Dorsiflexion Splinting Enhances Endothelial Function of Aged Leg Muscles
Endothelial function of the skeletal muscle vasculature declines with advancing age. Although
aerobic exercise training is commonly prescribed to combat loss of endothelial function in
the elderly, the rate of compliance to training programs is low. Contrary to aerobic exercise
training, stretching exercise is widely performed in elderly patients to increase muscle
flexibility and to prevent muscle atrophy induced by immobilization. However, it remains
unknown as to whether regular stretching of the calf muscles using ankle dorsiflexion
splinting improves muscle blood flow. The purpose of the proposed work is to test the
hypothesis that performance of ankle dorsiflexion splinting improves endothelial function and
lower leg muscle blood flow in older adults. Ankle dorsiflexion splinting will be performed
on the randomized leg for 30 minutes, 5 times per week for 4 weeks. Leg vascular measures
will be performed on the splinted and non-splinted legs prior to and at the end of the 4-week
intervention.
aerobic exercise training is commonly prescribed to combat loss of endothelial function in
the elderly, the rate of compliance to training programs is low. Contrary to aerobic exercise
training, stretching exercise is widely performed in elderly patients to increase muscle
flexibility and to prevent muscle atrophy induced by immobilization. However, it remains
unknown as to whether regular stretching of the calf muscles using ankle dorsiflexion
splinting improves muscle blood flow. The purpose of the proposed work is to test the
hypothesis that performance of ankle dorsiflexion splinting improves endothelial function and
lower leg muscle blood flow in older adults. Ankle dorsiflexion splinting will be performed
on the randomized leg for 30 minutes, 5 times per week for 4 weeks. Leg vascular measures
will be performed on the splinted and non-splinted legs prior to and at the end of the 4-week
intervention.
Older adults will be recruited in this study. Vascular function will be assessed before and
after the 4-week ankle splinting intervention. To examine the acute effects of splinting,
vascular measures will also be obtained before and immediately following 30 min of ankle
splinting. All procedures will be performed at the Integrative Cardiovascular Physiology
Laboratory at the University of Florida.
Participants will have one leg randomly assigned to using a splint to stretch the calf
muscles 30 min per day, 5 days per week for 4 weeks, while the contralateral non-splinted leg
will serve as an internal control.
after the 4-week ankle splinting intervention. To examine the acute effects of splinting,
vascular measures will also be obtained before and immediately following 30 min of ankle
splinting. All procedures will be performed at the Integrative Cardiovascular Physiology
Laboratory at the University of Florida.
Participants will have one leg randomly assigned to using a splint to stretch the calf
muscles 30 min per day, 5 days per week for 4 weeks, while the contralateral non-splinted leg
will serve as an internal control.
Inclusion Criteria:
- Men and women aged 60 to 79 years.
- Women will all be postmenopausal and must not take hormone replacement therapy.
- Sedentary, defined as no regular exercise training.
Exclusion Criteria:
- No evidence of heart disease evidenced by abnormal resting ECG, angina or ECG evidence
of acute myocardial ischemia during the exercise test, no history of any relevant
acute cardiac event (myocardial infarction, episode of heart failure)
- No history of deep vein thrombosis.
- No history of Type I or II diabetes mellitus.
- No history for renal or liver disease.
- No history of seizures, or other relevant on-going or recurrent illness.
We found this trial at
1
site
Gainesville, Florida 32610
(352) 392-3261
Principal Investigator: Demetra D Christou, Ph.D
Phone: 352-294-1715
University of Florida The University of Florida (UF) is a major, public, comprehensive, land-grant, research...
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