Tony Boucher¹* and Andrew Gallucci²

¹Department of Kinesiology and Sport Management, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, United States
²College of Health and Human Sciences, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, United States

*Corresponding Author: Tony Boucher, Department of Kinesiology and Sport Management, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, United States.

Received: November 01, 2022; Published: December 06, 2022

Abstract

Purpose: To investigate the effect of instrument-assisted manual technique versus standard manual soft tissue mobilization on heart rate, blood pressure, brachial artery blood flow, and subjective pain.

Subjects: Eleven males and nine females (age = 23.4 ± 2.7 years, height = 170.2 ± 8.2 cm, mass = 76.3 ± 18.1 kg) without pathology or cardiovascular impairment.

Methods: Participants received either instrument-assisted manual technique or manual soft tissue mobilization to anterior brachial region, medial forearm flexor wad, and distal bicep tendon on two testing sessions separated by 4-7 days. Brachial heart rate (bpm) and blood pressure (mm Hg) were measured using an automated blood pressure monitor and brachial artery blood flow velocity (cm/sec) was measured via spectral Doppler ultrasonography prior to therapy application, immediately post, and every 5 minutes for 30 minutes. Pain was measured post each testing session.

Data Analysis: A mixed design repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance compared heart rate, blood pressure, and blood velocity between the therapy applications across time. A mixed design repeated measures analysis of variance compared heart rate, blood pressure, and blood flow independently between therapy applications across time. Univariate analysis of variance compared pain between therapy applications.

Results: No significant multivariate difference was shown between therapy applications for heart rate, blood pressure, and blood flow (p = 0.74). No significant univariate difference was found between therapy applications in analysis over time for heart rate (Graston:65.5 to 64.5 bpm, manual:66.7 to 62.5 bpm; p = 0.73), systolic blood pressure (Graston:115.6 to 117.8 mm Hg, Manual:114.1 to 117.9 mm Hg; p = 0.72), diastolic blood pressure (Graston:71 to 74.2 mm Hg, Manual:69.6 to 73.8 mm Hg; p = 0.98), or blood flow (Graston:20.6 to 20.1 cm/sec, Manual:20.1 to 19.8 cm/sec; p = 0.32). There was a significant decrease in heart rate (66.1 to 63.72 bpm; p = 0.001) over time regardless of therapy application. Pairwise comparison revealed time significance between baseline to immediate post, ten minutes, twenty minutes, and twenty-five minutes post. No difference was found for pain between applications (Graston:3.3cm, Manual:3.9cm; p = 0.32).

Conclusion: Instrument-assisted manual techniques nor manual techniques differentially influence localized heart rate, blood pressure, or blood flow. Manual therapy, regardless of technique, does appear to reduce localized heart rate and stimulate equivalent subjective pain.

Keywords: Instrument-Assisted Manual Therapy; Doppler; Brachial; Blood Flow

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Citation

Citation: Tony Boucher and Andrew Gallucci. “The Effect of Instrument-Assisted Manual Therapy Technique on Brachial Hemodynamics and Pain”.Acta Scientific Orthopaedics 6.1 (2023): 45-51.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2023 Tony Boucher and Andrew Gallucci.This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.