Squat Jump Performance and Chiropractic Ankle Manipulation

NCT07641621 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 26-02
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 60
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if chiropractic ankle manipulation can improve squat jump performance. It will also learn about the relationship among chiropractic ankle manipulation, ankle range of motion, and squat jump performance. The main questions it aims to answer are:

• Does chiropractic ankle manipulation increase squat jump height?
• Is there a relationship among chiropractic ankle manipulation, ankle range of motion, and squat jump performance? Researchers will compare squat jump performance between subjects who receive chiropractic ankle manipulations with control subjects to see if ankle chiropractic manipulation works to improve squat jump performance. Participants will:
• Visit the research laboratory for one testing session to measure ankle range of motion and squat jump performance, before and after their randomly assigned intervention arm
• Receive either a chiropractic ankle manipulations or rest quietly as the control condition during the testing session.

Conditions

Athletic Performance; Neuromuscular Adaptations; Lower Limb; Chiropractic Manipulation

Keywords

chiropractic; manipulation; ankle; squat jump; athletic performance

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Squat Jump Height

  Subjects will be instructed to jump upwards from the starting squat position as high as possible. Subjects will perform 3 to 6 jumps with 3 consecutive jump heights being within 5% of each other to ensure maximum jump height is achieved. There will be a one-minute rest between jumps. * Starting position. Subjects will assume the starting squat position with their hips at 90°, knees at 120°, and ankles at 85° as positioned by the PI. An adjustable plyometric jump box will be used to standardize the starting position. Hands will be resting across their chest with the trunk and head positioned straight ahead. * Squat Jump: Subjects will be instructed to jump as high as possible and land in a comfortable position. Hands will remain across the chest for the duration of The Optojump photoelectric cell system (OptoJump) will be used to record jump height. OptoJump demonstrates strong concurrent validity and excellent test-retest reliability for the estimation of vertical jump height

  Baseline on Day 1 to Immediately after Intervention on Day 1

• Range of Motion of Ankle Dorsiflexion

  Knee-to-wall ankle dorsiflexion test: * Ankle dorsiflexion ROM (distance from wall - cm) is the maximum distance of the big toe from the wall while maintaining contact between the wall and the knee with the heel on the ground. * The subject will repeat the Knee-to-wall ankle dorsiflexion test three times at this maximum distance to allow the PI to record three goniometer measurements of ankle dorsiflexion ROM (degrees°).

  Baseline on Day 1 to Immediately after Treatment on Day 1 and at End of Test Session on Day 1

Secondary Outcomes (3)

• Leg Muscle Power (W/Kg)

  Baseline on Day 1 to Immediately after Intervention on Day 1

• Contraction Velocity of Leg Muscles (mm/s), Force-Velocity Curve

  Baseline on Day 1 to Immediately after Intervention on Day 1

• Rate of Force Development of Leg Muscles (N/s), Slope of the Force - Velocity Curve

  Baseline on Day 1 to Immediately after Intervention on Day 1

Study Arms (2)

Chiropractic Ankle Manipulation

EXPERIMENTAL

LEM - Lower Extremity Manipulation: Subjects assigned to the LEM Intervention Group will receive a short lever, high velocity, low-amplitude distractive (caudal) thrust directed at the talocrural joint. The treating chiropractor will deliver the LEM to the right ankle then the left ankle. LEM is an adjustment for long axis distraction of the tibiotalar joint with the goal to improve dorsiflexion of the ankle joint.

Other: Manual Therapy Procedure: Chiropractic Ankle Manipulation

Control

NO INTERVENTION

Subjects assigned to the Control Group will rest quietly, supine (face up), on the chiropractic treatment table for five (5) minutes.

Interventions

Manual Therapy Procedure: Chiropractic Ankle Manipulation OTHER

The lower extremity manipulation (LEM) procedure is a short lever, high velocity, low-amplitude distractive (caudal) thrust directed at the talocrural joint. The treating chiropractor will deliver the LEM to the right ankle then the left ankle. LEM is an adjustment for long axis distraction of the tibiotalar joint with the goal to improve dorsiflexion of the ankle joint.

Also known as: Lower Extremity Manipulation

Chiropractic Ankle Manipulation

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 35 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• age range from 18 to 35 years old; and
• participating in recreational exercise, three times a week for at least 30 minutes. Recreational exercise includes ball sports (e.g. soccer, basketball, volleyball, etc.), racket sports (e.g. tennis, pickle ball, racket ball, etc.), strength/combat sports (e.g. weight lifting, boxing, martial arts, kickboxing, etc.), endurance sports (running, cycling, rock climbing, etc.), snow/ice sports (downhill or cross-county skiing, snow shoeing, hockey, etc.), interval training (e.g., high-intensity interval training), sprint interval training, repeated sprint training etc.) or moderate-intensity aerobic activities (step classes, dance classes, hiking, etc.)

You may not qualify if:

• professional or amateur ranked athlete;
• acute or chronic musculoskeletal injury / condition of the feet, ankles, knees, and/or hips;
• acute or chronic musculoskeletal injury / condition of the spine;
• pregnancy or there is a possibility of pregnancy.
• any diagnosed medical condition; and
• any prescribed medications with the exceptions of birth control, anxiety, or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medications.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Northeast College of Health Sciences: lead

Study Sites (1)

Biomechanics Laboratory at Northeast College of Health Sciences

Seneca Falls, New York, 13148, United States

Location

Central Study Contacts

Jeanmarie R Burke, PhD

CONTACT

315 568-3869; jburke@northeastcollege.edu

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: DOUBLE
• Who Masked: INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Dean of Research

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: May 31, 2026
• First Posted: June 11, 2026
• Study Start: June 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): May 1, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): May 1, 2027
• Last Updated: June 11, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-05

Locations

US (1)