Effects of vibration rolling on ankle range of motion and ankle muscle stiffness in stroke patients: a crossover study

Background: Vibration stimulation has emerged as a treatment tool to aid spasticity during physical therapy. However, the benefits of vibration rolling (VR) on interventions for stroke patients are unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effect of VR intervention on the range of motion (ROM) and ankle stiffness in stroke patients. Methods: In this crossover design study, seven stroke patients completed two test sessions (one VR and one non-VR [NVR]) in a randomized order, with 48 h of rest between each session. Participants completed intervention and its measurements on the same day. The measurements included ankle dorsiflexion and plantarflexion ROM and stiffness of ankle muscles, including the tibialis anterior and gastrocnemius lateral and medial muscles. Results: After VR, ankle dorsiflexion ROM, gastrocnemius lateral stiffness, and gastrocnemius medial stiffness improved significantly (all P < 0.05). After NVR, only gastrocnemius lateral stiffness improved significantly (P < 0.05). Furthermore, compared with the change values for ankle dorsiflexion ROM and gastrocnemius lateral stiffness, VR showed a more significant difference than NVR (P < 0.05).Conclusions: VR improved ankle ROM and muscle stiffness. Therefore, we suggest that practitioners should consider VR as an intervention to increase dorsiflexion ROM and gastrocnemius stiffness in stroke patients.