Effect of a 4-week balance exercise with medio-lateral unstable sole on ankle joint functional ability.
Su-Bin Nam, Bo-Ram Choi
PMID 28744032WHAT IT FOUND
Four weeks of home balance exercises wearing unstable sandals produced no significant improvement in ankle muscle activity or dynamic balance in healthy adults.
The intervention failed to change peroneus longus or brevis activation, nor did it improve Star Excursion Balance Test scores.
Key findings
01Activities of the peroneus longus and brevis muscles during stair descending and the Star Excursion Balance Test did not change significantly before and after the exercises in the sandals.
02The 4-week balance exercise program with the medio-lateral unstable sole showed no significant difference in results for the improvement of muscle activity and balance ability.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
Exercises were performed at home without supervision, so compliance and technique were not monitored. The study included only healthy young adults, so results may not apply to patients with existing ankle instability or chronic injuries. The authors note that healthy subjects already had high baseline balance scores, which may have masked potential improvements. The exercise intensity may have been too low to challenge the ankle joints sufficiently.
Declared interests
The paper does not report specific funding sources or conflicts of interest in the provided text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that balance exercises are ineffective for ankle stability. This study only tested a specific unstable sole device in healthy young adults with unsupervised home exercises. It does not rule out benefits for injured populations or with supervised, higher-intensity protocols.