Myofascial force transmission between antagonistic rat lower limb muscles: Effects of single muscle or muscle group lengthening

Meijer, Hanneke J.M and Rijkelijkhuizen, Josina M. and Huijing, Peter A. (2007) Myofascial force transmission between antagonistic rat lower limb muscles: Effects of single muscle or muscle group lengthening. Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology, 17 (6). pp. 698-707. ISSN 1050-6411

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Abstract:	Effects of lengthening of the whole group of anterior crural muscles (tibialis anterior and extensor hallucis longus muscles (TA + EHL) and extensor digitorum longus (EDL)) on myofascial interaction between synergistic EDL and TA + EHL muscles, and on myofascial force transmission between anterior crural and antagonistic peroneal muscles, were investigated. All muscles were either passive or maximally active. Peroneal muscles were kept at a constant muscle tendon complex length. Either EDL or all anterior crural muscles were lengthened so that effects of lengthening of TA + EHL could be analyzed. For both lengthening conditions, a significant difference in proximally and distally measured EDL passive and active forces, indicative of epimuscular myofascial force transmission, was present. However, added lengthening of TA + EHL significantly affected the magnitude of the active and passive load exerted on EDL. For the active condition, the direction of the epimuscular load on EDL was affected; at all muscle lengths a proximally directed load was exerted on EDL, which decreased at higher muscle lengths. Lengthening of anterior crural muscles caused a 26% decrease in peroneal active force. Extramuscular myofascial connections are thought to be the major contributor to the EDL proximo-distal active force difference. For antagonistic peroneal complex, the added distal lengthening of a synergistic muscle increases the effects of extramuscular myofascial force transmission.
Item Type:	Article
Copyright:	© 2007 Elsevier
Faculty:	Science and Technology (TNW)
Research Group:	Biomechanical Engineering (BE)
Link to this item:	http://purl.utwente.nl/publications/78856
Official URL:	http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jelekin.2007.02.006
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Metis ID: 240691