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Some properties of spastic ankle joint muscles in hemiplegia

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Abstract

Patterns of stretch reflex activities provoked by sinusoidal oscillations at the ankle joint were studied in hemiplegic patients. Three different patterns regarding tonic and phasic reflex activity were found to be typical for these patients. Rather than length-dependent inhibition, known from paraplegic and multiple sclerosis patients, a neutral effect or facilitation of stretch reflex was observed. The resistance to these movements was also studied at different muscle lengths. It was proved that the resistance to passive movements is highly dependent on the muscle length at which it is tested. It is therefore suggested that the value of resistance together with the muscle length should be documented.

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Reberšek, S., Stefanovska, A., Vodovnik, L. et al. Some properties of spastic ankle joint muscles in hemiplegia. Med. Biol. Eng. Comput. 24, 19–26 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02441601

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02441601

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