Effects of Specific Thoracic Spine Mobilizations on Muscle Activity in a Healthy Volunteer Population (RACHIMOB)

In this study, the investigators will examine the effect of manual therapy on the thoracic spine and its impact on the muscular strength gain of the thoracic extensors. Treatment with manual therapy, as described by Maitland, consists of a specific mobilization of the thoracic spine in the postero-anterior direction on the transverse and spiny processes of the thoracic vertebrae. To ensure the relevance of the measures, and to better control the occurrence of biases inherent to the practice of manual therapy, the investigators constituted three distinct groups: an intervention group, a control group and a group without intervention. In short, this methodology will allow us to explore in detail the effects of specific spinal mobilization on motor control, while taking into account placebo response elements and natural variations in the results

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Range of Motion; Musculoskeletal Manipulations; Muscle Strength; Peripheral Joints in Upper Quarters
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: mobilization; Other: no effect

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 156
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• France
  • Picardie
    • Amiens, Picardie, France, 80054
      • CHU Amiens Picardie

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Ages 18 to 65,
• healthy volunteer,
• membership in a social security scheme

Exclusion Criteria:

• Severe spinal trauma within the last 6 months
• history of low back pain, back pain, and/or neck pain within the last 6 months,
• history of spinal surgery,
• history of chronic systemic disease (cardiac, respiratory, diabetes, etc.),
• volunteer with Pacemaker, history of rheumatological pathology (rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, Scheuermann's disease, etc.),
• patient under guardianship,curatorship, safeguard of justice, patient deprived of liberty, pregnant woman and patient without Red Flags Social Security described in literature.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Interventional; This study is of an interventional nature, because the investigators want to objectively assess the impact of specific mobilization on neuromuscular functioning, thanks to surface EMG, before and after a specific mobilization of the spine.	Other: mobilization; specific mobilization on neuromuscular functioning, thanks to surface EMG, before and after a specific mobilization of the spine
Sham Comparator: control; This approach will help to determine whether there is spontaneous modulation of neuromuscular activity in the absence of intervention. Thus, the investigators can distinguish the effects of intervention from natural variations in the healthy subject.	Other: no effect; a mobilization identified as "no effect" could modulate neuromuscular activity by a placebo effect.
No Intervention: no interventional; A control group was also integrated to assess whether a mobilization identified as "no effect" could modulate neuromuscular activity by a placebo effect. This approach will allow to disentangle the real effects of mobilization from those that could result from psychomotor responses

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
electrical activity assessment of the spine extensor muscles using EMG	1 hour

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Centre Hospitalier Universitaire, Amiens

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): March 28, 2024
• Primary Completion (Actual): October 28, 2025
• Study Completion (Actual): February 16, 2026

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: April 16, 2024
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 16, 2024
• First Posted (Actual): April 19, 2024

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 31, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 26, 2026
• Last Verified: May 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Muscle Strength; Range of Motion; Musculoskeletal Manipulations; peripheral joints in upper quarters
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Investigative Techniques; Physiological Phenomena; Pharmacological and Toxicological Phenomena; Toxicity Tests; Toxicological Phenomena; No-Observed-Adverse-Effect Level
• Other Study ID Numbers: PI2024_843_0008

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No