Does balance ligamentous tension to the occipital atlas complex have an acute effect on proprioception compared to a control group?
Item
- Title
- Does balance ligamentous tension to the occipital atlas complex have an acute effect on proprioception compared to a control group?
- Author(s)
- Dougherty, C
- Abstract
- Introduction: Balance is maintained by the interaction of the sensory and motor system regulated by the central nervous system (CNS). When more than one of these sensory systems is affected, postural control will be disrupted. The cervical spine plays an important role in postural control due to an increase in muscle spindles in the suboccipital compared to the rest of the spinal muscles. Disruption to the connective tissues of the cervical spine such as whiplash injury, cervical pain or degeneration was shown to affect postural stability. Balance ligamentous tension (BLT) is thought to balance out the ligaments surrounding the joint. However, it is poorly researched. Aim: The aim of this experiment was to see if balance ligamentous tension (BLT) to the occipital atlas complex has an acute effect on proprioception compared to a control group. Design: Randomized controlled experimental study using independent variables Method: This small-scale experimental study recruited students from the European school of osteopathy (ESQ) and international students in osteopathy. The experiment was run at the ESQ. There were no specific exclusion criteria as the participants had their pre and post experimental measures recorded within 15 minutes The inclusion criteria required was informed consent from participants, students between 18 and 60, female and male. Different outcome measures were collected with regard to the Centre of pressure (COP) using a Wii balance board Data was analysed using Analyse-it; it was tested for normal distribution with Shapiro- Wilks test and for equality of variance with the Levene's test. Some outcome measures (QM) were analysed with ANQVA and others with the Kruskal-Wallis test to determine if there was a difference between the groups Procedure:_Participants where randomly allocated to control or intervention groups Proprioceptive outcome measures OM were collected pre and post intervention for both groups The intervention group received a 8LT of the occipital atlas complex and the control group laid on the treatment couch for 7 minutes. Results: 60 participants were recruited for the experiment, of which 31 were allocated to the intervention group (Female/Male 17/14) and 29 to in the control group (Female/Male 13/16). There was no statistical difference found between and within the groups for all the different OM collected.Discussion: This study suggests that the application of BLT to the occipital atlas complex has no acute response on proprioception. Several factors might have limited this study. These include the sample size, design adopted, procedure used, and the equipment. Conclusion: The results of this study do not support the idea that BLT applied to the occipital atlas complex has an acute effect on proprioception. Further research is required, using a different experimental method, and applying it to a symptomatic population.
- presented at
- European School of Osteopathy
- Date Accepted
- 2016
- Date Submitted
- 2.12.2016 17:29:04
- Type
- osteo_thesis
- Language
- English
- Submitted by:
- 62
- Pub-Identifier
- 15940
- Inst-Identifier
- 1229
- Keywords
- Balance board, Proprioception, Balance ligamentous tension, Manual therapy, Osteopathy, Cervical spine.
- Recommended
- 0
- Item sets
- Thesis
Dougherty, C, “Does balance ligamentous tension to the occipital atlas complex have an acute effect on proprioception compared to a control group?”, Osteopathic Research Web, accessed April 23, 2025, https://library.wso.at/s/orw/item/541