Trunk extensor muscle fatigue influences trunk muscle activities.

BACKGROUND

Trunk muscles fatigue is one of the risk factors in workplaces and daily activities. Loads would be redistributed among active and passive tissues in a non-optimal manner in fatigue conditions. Therefore, a single tissue might be overloaded with minimal loads and as a result the risk of injury would increase.

OBJECTIVE

The goal of this paper was to assess the electromyographic response of trunk extensor and abdominal muscles after trunk extensor muscles fatigue induced by cyclic lifting task.

METHODS

This was an experimental study that twenty healthy women participated. For assessing automatic response of trunk extensor and abdominal muscles before and after the fatigue task, electromyographic activities of 6 muscles: thorasic erector spine (TES), lumbar erector spine (LES), lumbar multifidus (LMF), transverse abdominis/ internal oblique (TrA/IO), rectus abdominis (RA) and external oblique (EO) were recorded in standing position with no load and symmetric axial loads equal to 25% of their body weights.

RESULTS

Statistical analysis showed that all the abdominal muscles activity decreased with axial loads after performing fatigue task but trunk extensor activity remained constant.

CONCLUSIONS

Results of the current study indicated that muscle recruitment strategies changed with muscle fatigue and load bearing, therefore risks of tissue injury may increase in fatigue conditions.