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Effect of a Neoprene Sleeve on Knee Joint Position Sense During Sitting Open Kinetic Chain and Supine Closed Kinetic Chain Tests

Trevor B. Birmingham, MSc^*,, John F. Kramer, PhD^*, J. Tim Inglis, PhD, Colleen A. Mooney, BSc, PT^*, Lisa J. Murray, BSc, PT^*, Peter J. Fowler, MD^* and Sandy Kirkley, MD^*

^* Faculty of Health Sciences, The University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
School of Human Kinetics, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Trevor B. Birmingham, MSc, School of Physical Therapy, Elborn College, The University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6G 1H1

The primary objective of the present study was to compare the effect of a neoprene sleeve on knee joint position sense during a sitting open kinetic chain test and a supine closed kinetic chain test. Young (24 ± 2 years old), healthy subjects (18 men and 18 women) performed knee joint angle replication tests during open kinetic chain knee extension (sitting) and closed kinetic chain leg press (supine with an axial load of 15% body weight) before and after application of a neoprene sleeve over the dominant knee. The improvement in ability to replicate joint angles after application of the sleeve (sleeve effect) was significantly less during the supine closed kinetic chain test (0.3° ± 1.4°) than during the sitting open kinetic chain test (1.2° ± 1.1°). The sleeve effect was inversely related to subjects’ performance without the sleeve during both the sitting open kinetic chain and supine closed kinetic chain tests, suggesting that some people may derive greater benefit from the sleeve than others. Although the sleeve effects were small, particularly during the supine closed kinetic chain test, 72% of subjects felt that the sleeve improved their overall test performance. Future research is needed to establish the functional relevance of the small sleeve effects observed and to identify the characteristics of people who might derive greatest benefit from sleeve use.

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