ArticleScientific reports2018
The potential role of sciatic nerve stiffness in the limitation of maximal ankle range of motion.
Article in Scientific reports, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 61 citations in OpenAlex.
- Acute and Long-Term Effects of Static Stretching on Muscle-Tendon Unit Stiffness: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of sports science & medicine · 2023Pooled it
- Peripheral Nerve Responses to Muscle Stretching: A Systematic Review.Journal of sports science & medicine · 2021Pooled it
- Technique-specific reduction of sciatic nerve stiffness through neurodynamic stretches at submaximal and maximal intensity in asymptomatic individuals.European journal of applied physiology · 2026Trial
- Immediate effects of passive stretching and/or local vibration on ankle range of motion, calf muscle stiffness and passive torque: a randomized controlled cross-over trial.European journal of applied physiology · 2025Trial
- Passive vs. active warm-up combined with stretching on hamstring flexibility and maximal voluntary contractions.PloS one · 2025Trial
- The effects of static and dynamic stretching on deep fascia stiffness: a randomized, controlled cross-over study.European journal of applied physiology · 2024Trial
- One of These Things Is Not Like the Others: Disentangling the Concepts of Range of Motion Versus Flexibility, and Flexibility Training Versus Stretching.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Article
- Shear Wave Elastography of the Brachial Plexus and Target Muscle in Interscalene Block: A Narrative Review of Quantitative Tools for Patient-Centered Regional Anesthesia.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Shear Wave Elastography of the Sciatic Nerve and Its Relationship with Posterior Chain Flexibility in Healthy Participants: An Observational Study.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Observational
- Is nerve-directed stretching effective for improving of ankle joint flexibility and tissue stiffness in older men?Journal of clinical biochemistry and nutrition · 2025Article
- Restoring ankle dorsiflexion range of motion in athletes: an individualized clinical decision-making system.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2025Article
- Resistance Training Causes the Stretch-Induced Force Deficit-A Randomized Cross-Over Study.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Using ultrasound shear wave elastography to characterize peripheral nerve mechanics: a systematic review on the normative reference values in healthy individuals.Ultrasonography (Seoul, Korea) · 2024Article
- Acute effect of static stretching on non-muscular tissue stiffness and joint flexibility: a comparative study between older and young men.European journal of applied physiology · 2024Article
- In Vivo Effects of Joint Movement on Nerve Mechanical Properties Assessed with Shear-Wave Elastography: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- Acute Effects of Stretching Exercises on Posterior Chain: Analysis of Shear Modulus by Elastography SSI.Translational sports medicine · 2023Article
- Influence of Rolfing Structural Integration on Active Range of Motion: A Retrospective Cohort Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2022Article
- Acute changes in passive stiffness of the individual hamstring muscles induced by resistance exercise: effects of contraction mode and range of motion.European journal of applied physiology · 2022Article
- Foundational Principles and Adaptation of the Healthy and Pathological Achilles Tendon in Response to Resistance Exercise: A Narrative Review and Clinical Implications.Journal of clinical medicine · 2022Review
- Effects of Different Long-Term Exercise Modalities on Tissue Stiffness.Sports medicine - open · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 5 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
It is a long held belief that maximal joint range of motion (ROM) is restricted by muscle tension. However, it exists indirect evidence suggesting that this assumption may not hold true for some joint configurations where non-muscular structures, such as the peripheral nerves, are stretched. Direct evidences are lacking. This study aimed to determine whether a static stretching aiming to load the sciatic nerve without stretch within plantar flexors is effective to: (i) alter nerve stiffness; and (ii) increase the ankle's maximal ROM. Passive maximal ankle ROM in dorsiflexion was assessed with the hip flexed at 90° (HIP-flexed) or neutral (HIP-neutral, 0°). Sciatic nerve stiffness was estimated using shear wave elastography. Sciatic nerve stretching induced both a 13.3 ± 7.9% (P < 0.001) decrease in the nerve stiffness and a 6.4 ± 2.6° increase in the maximal dorsiflexion ROM assessed in HIP-flexed. In addition, the decrease in sciatic nerve stiffness was significantly correlated with the change in maximal ROM in dorsiflexion (r = -0.571, P = 0.026). These effects occurred in the absence of any change in gastrocnemius medialis and biceps femoris stiffness, and ankle passive torque. These results demonstrate that maximal dorsiflexion ROM can be acutely increased by stretching the sciatic nerve, without altering the muscle stiffness.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.