Background: Proprioception in the ankle joint is important for maintaining balance. There is a correlation between joint position sense (JPS), balance and ankle dorsiflexion range of motion (DF-ROM). Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of talocrural joint mobilization (TJM) and muscle energy technique (MET) of plantar flexor muscle (PF) on improving joint position sense (JPS) and static balance. Design: Cross-over randomized trial research. Methods: Sixteen participants (male 10, female 6; 20’s of their age) without ankle instability were recruited. In a randomized, three conditions, no intervention, talocalcaneal mobilization, and PF-MET were all applied to 16 participants. For TJM, the Kaltenborn grade 3 joint gliding method, in which the talus moves posteriorly perpendicular to the tacrocrural joint plane, were used. In the PF-MET, MET method were applied gastrocnemius muscle and soleus muscle with 25% of 1 Repeat Maximum of each muscle. The all participants performed PF-MET and TJM for 18 minutes. DF-ROM measured the weightbearing lunge test. JPS measured using the active joint angle reproduction test. Static balance was measured displacement of center of pressure parameter. Results: PF-MET and TJM had significant differences in DF-ROM and AP displacements. PF-MET significantly increased at 5° and 15° of plantar flexion and 5° of dorsiflexion, and COP velocity significantly decreased in JPS compared to TJM. Conclusion: PF-MET and TJM are effective in increasing DF-ROM. However, PF-MET has a more positive effect on improving JPS and static balance than on talocrural joint mobilization.

The purpose of this study was to assess the changes in balance and proprioception of adults with limited ankle joint dorsiflexion, after the application of talocrural joint mobilization. The subjects of this study included 23 college students in their twenties with limited ankle joint dorsiflexion. The students were randomly assigned to the ankle joint mobilization group (AJMG, n=12) and the control group (CG, n=11). After 2 weeks of intervention using grade III talocrural joint mobilization in the anterior-posterior movement, the balance and proprioception of the subjects were assessed. Static/dynamic balance capabilities and ankle proprioception were analyzed using paired t-test and independent t-test. The dynamic balance and proprioception of AJMG were significantly improved after intervention (p<.05), In the comparison between the groups after the intervention, the dynamic balance and proprioceptive sense of AJMG were significantly improved compared to the control group (p<.05). This study suggests that AJMG can help improve the dynamic balance and proprioception.