Effect of Exercises in Water and Thera-Band on the Electrical Activity of Lower Limb Muscles in People with Pronated Foot During Walking: A Clinical Trial Study

The ankle joint is one of the most vulnerable joints in the body due to weight bearing. Pronated foot is one of the most common complications of the lower limbs. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of exercise protocol in water and theraband on the electrical activity of lower limb muscles in people with pronate foot during walking.

The present research was a clinical trial study that was conducted in a semi-experimental and laboratory. The participants of the present study included 45 students of University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran,  who had pronated foot. They were selected purposefully and divided into three equal groups. The age range of the subjects was 18-25 years. To measure the electrical activity muscles of lower limbs, it was recorded using an electromyography device. Electromyography data were analyzed using biometric datalite program. In addition, analysis of variance with repeated measurements and bonferroni post hoc test was used, and the significance level was P≤0.05.

The results showed that there was a significant difference between time*group activity of the gastrocnemius (P=0.001) and semitendinosus (P=0.046) in the three groups of training in water, theraband and control during the heel contact phase. Therefore, using the appropriate post hoc test (LSD), it was shown that the activity of the gastrocnemius muscle in the post-test compared to the pre-test in the group of training in water (P<0.001; d=6.08) and theraband (P<0.001; d=3.66) had a significant increase of 24.03 and 16.46%, respectively. The activity of the semitendinosus muscle in the post-test compared to the pre-test in the water training group (P=0.041; d=4.98) and theraband (P=0.048; d=4.76) had a significant increase of 21.06 and 19.01%, respectively.

According to the present study, it seems that doing exercises in water and thera-band can play an effective role in improving the range of electrical activity of the muscles on lower limbs of people with pronated foot during walking. In addition, according to the effect size, it was found that training in water had a better effect on the activity of the gastrocnemius and semi tendinosus compared to thera-band.