Assessment of joint position sense in active and passive modes with various elbow flexion angles and movement speeds using an isokinetic dynamometer

Background

Joint position sense is the ability to detect body segment position in space and is commonly used to represent proprioceptive performance. The isokinetic dynamometer is frequently used to evaluate elbow joint position sense during active and passive reproduction tasks with various testing protocols. However, few studies have reported the performance of joint position sense under different testing conditions.

Objective

To compare elbow joint position sense between active and passive reproduction tasks under different matching speeds and reference targets.

Design

A cross-sectional study.

Methods

Twenty participants without a history of upper-extremity surgery or neuromuscular diseases that affect the joint position sense of the elbow. Active and passive ipsilateral matching tasks were performed at four movement speeds (0.5°/s, 1°/s, 2°/s, and 4°/s) and three reference targets (elbow flexion at 0°–15°, 45°–60°, and 75°–90°), using an isokinetic dynamometer. The absolute and variable errors of each condition were calculated for comparison.

Results

In active matching task with elbow flexion of 0°–15°, the absolute error at 0.5°/s was significantly larger than that at 2°/s and 4°/s, while the variable error at 1°/s was significantly larger than that at 2°/s. However, no differences were found at elbow flexion angles of 45°–60° and 75°–90°. Larger absolute errors were found at 4°/s with three testing angles in passive matching task.

Conclusions

This study compared the joint position sense errors under various testing conditions in the active and passive reproduction tasks. The movement speeds and target position effects should be considered during evaluation.