Effect of a neck proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation training program on body postural stability in elite female basketball players

Balance is an indispensable part of daily activities and is considered important in examining the performance of athletes especially in basketball. Despite the advantages of neck proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) training on neck proprioception, it has remained understudied. Neck proprioception is very important for performance in exercise. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of neck PNF training on neck proprioception on postural stability and limit of stability in elite female basketball players. In this study, 30 female basketball players with at least three years of basketball activity were randomly assigned into two groups: experimental group (neck PNF training) and control group. The experimental group participated in 4-week neck PNF training sessions (12 sessions per week). On the other hand, the control group performed only daily routine exercises. Limit of stability and postural stability index of the participants were determined by the Biodex balance test before and after the exercise program. Independent t-test (between the two groups) and paired t-test (in each group) were applied using the SPSS-18 software to analyze the obtained data, with a significance level of p<0.05 adopted. The results indicated that after 4 weeks of neck PNF training, the means of overall stability index in the exercise group decreased from 1.47±0.27 to 0.92±0.07 (P<0.001). Also, for mediolateral index, it declined from 1.17±0.37 to 0.85±0.35 (P=0.04), and for the anteroposterior index it fell from 1.14±0.13 to 0.92±0.08 (P<0.001). However, there were no significant differences between prepost training in the control group. These results provide evidence that neck PNF training can be used to enhance the postural stability and limit of stability indices of basketball players. The neck proprioception may be improved with training programs, and neck PNF training improved postural stability index can reduce sports injuries and enhance athletic performance.