Electrical cutaneous stimulation of the foot sole does not enhance rate of torque development during maximal effort isometric plantarflexion in females

Abstract

Rate of torque development (RTD) measures how rapidly one can generate torque and is crucial for balance and athletic performance. Fast RTD depends on the rapid recruitment of high threshold motor units (MUs). Cutaneous electrical stimulation has been shown to alter MU excitability, favoring high threshold MUs via reduced recruitment thresholds. A strong coupling exists between foot sole cutaneous mechanoreceptors and motor neurons of lower-limb muscles, yet it remains unknown if cutaneous input can impact RTD via modulation of MU excitability. This study aimed to investigate whether electrical stimulation across the heel could alter plantarflexion RTD. 11 young and healthy females underwent eight sets of five explosive isometric plantarflexion contractions on a dynamometer while sitting with hip, knee and ankle angles of 80°, 110°, and 90°, respectively. All participants achieved > 95 % voluntary activation of their plantar flexors. Four sets of contractions were performed with heel cutaneous electrical stimulation (1.0 ms pulses delivered at 300 Hz, at 2 × perceptual threshold) and four sets with no stimulation. Instantaneous RTD values were analyzed in 25 ms epochs from onset to 250 ms. No significant differences were observed between stimulation conditions within each epoch, thus our results suggest that electrical cutaneous stimulation does not alter RTD in this population.