Abstract Background We previously showed 8-week of fish oil supplementation attenuated muscle damage. However, the effect a shorter period is unclear. The present study investigated oil, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA), for 4 weeks on muscular damage caused by eccentric contractions (ECCs) elbow flexors. Methods Twenty-two untrained men were recruited in this double-blind,...

Balancing exercises on instable bases (sensorimotor training [SMT]) are often used in the rehabilitation process of an injured athlete to restore joint function. Recently it was shown that SMT was able to enhance rate of force development (RFD) in a maximal voluntary muscle contraction. The purpose of this study was to compare adaptations on strength capacity following ballistic strength traini...

Central and peripheral factors were studied in fatigue of submaximal intermittent isometric contractions of the human quadriceps and soleus muscles. Subjects made repeated 6 s, 50% maximal voluntary contractions (MVC) followed by 4 s rest until the limit of endurance (Tlim). Periodically, a fatigue test was performed. This included a brief MVC, either a single shock or 8 pulses at 50 Hz during ...

INTRODUCTION Fatigue is a common and debilitating symptom in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). Self-reported levels of perceived fatigue are associated with both patient characteristics and clinical measures. Pilot analysis indicated that muscle fatigability combined with depression scores was highly associated with perceived fatigue in patients with MS. Studies that combine physiological ...

The aim of this study was to investigate the difference in a muscle contraction phase dependence between ipsilateral (ipsi)- and contralateral (contra)-primary motor cortex (M1) excitability during repetitive isometric contractions of unilateral index finger abduction using a transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) technique. Ten healthy right-handed subjects participated in this study. We inst...

Objectives: The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of different loads on tremor around 10 Hz during fatiguing contractions. Methods: Eighteen healthy volunteers performed sustained isometric knee extensions at 30%, 50% and 70% maximum voluntary contraction (MVC). During the fatiguing contractions, mechanical recordings were made with a high-resolution force sensor. Tremorpower was ...

Spectral parameters of the surface electromyographic (EMG) signal from lumbar back muscles assessed during a fatiguing isometric contraction can be used to classify different categories of low back pain (LBP) subjects and control subjects without LBP. In the test protocol currently used at the NeuroMuscular Research Center at Boston University, subjects contract their back muscles at 80% of the...

The purpose of this study was to assess the influence of the work history of the inspiratory muscles upon the fatigue characteristics of the plantar flexors (PF). We hypothesized that under conditions where the inspiratory muscle metaboreflex has been elicited, PF fatigue would be hastened due to peripheral vasoconstriction. Eight volunteers undertook seven test conditions, two of which followe...

Adequate grip force modulation is critical to manual dexterity and often impaired in hemiparetic stroke patients. Previous studies in hemiparetic patients suggest that aspects of grip force control may be differently affected by the lesion. We developed a visuomotor power grip force-tracking task allowing quantification of tracking error, force variability and release duration. We investigated ...

Following repetitive lengthening contractions, power (the product of torque and velocity) is impaired during shortening contractions. However, the relative contribution of each component to power loss and the underlying factors are unclear. We investigated neuromuscular properties of the dorsiflexors in 8 males (27 ± 3 years) and 8 females (26 ± 4 years) for a potential sex-related difference b...