RESUMO
CONTEXT: Exercise-associated muscle cramps are a common clinical problem for athletes. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether acute passive static stretching altered cramp threshold frequency (CTF) of electrically induced muscle cramps. DESIGN: Crossover study. SETTING: Laboratory. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Seventeen healthy college-aged individuals. INTERVENTION(S): Stretching or no stretching. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): The independent variable was the static stretch versus the no-stretch condition, and the dependent variable was the CTF. RESULTS: The CTF increased in both the control (pretest: 18.12 ± 6.46 Hz, posttest: 19.65 ± 7.25 Hz; P = .033) and stretching (pretest: 18.94 ± 5.96 Hz, posttest: 20.47 ± 7.12 Hz; P = .049) groups. No difference between the groups was found (t15 = 0.035, P = .97). CONCLUSIONS: Acute passive static stretching did not seem to increase the CTF.
