J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 1997 Sep; 20(7): 443-7.

A study of two stretching techniques for improving hip flexion range of motion.

Pollard H, Ward G.

Centre for Chiropractic, School of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

OBJECTIVES: To compare the effectiveness of a spinal (suboccipital) stretching technique and a peripheral stretching technique. DESIGN: Clinical cohort study. SETTING: Macquarie University Centre for Chiropractic Outpatient Clinic. METHOD: A reliable hand-held dynamometer was used to determine the end point of range of motion (ROM) before and after the application of a treatment. Three groups of subjects were treated: cervical stretch, hip stretch and sham/placebo. ROM of the hip in flexion (straight leg raise) was used as the independent variable. SAMPLE: Sixty randomly allocated university students aged between 18 and 35 yr. RESULTS: The two stretching treatments resulted in increased flexion ROM at the hip. Statistical analysis revealed that only the sub-occipital stretching procedure increased hip flexion ROM significantly. CONCLUSION: Manual therapy of the neck may have a role to play in the treatment of extraspinal, lower-limb musculoskeletal conditions.