An interventional study of Static stretching and Assisted dynamic stretching in Healthy Volunteers, Muscle Strength and Motor Control, sponsored by Grgur Kovačić. Completed at 1 site in Croatia. Open to participants aged 20 Years to 35 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-10-21.
Sponsored by Grgur Kovačić · Not applicable, Interventional, and Basic science
Static stretching, dynamic stretching, elastic (Kinesio) taping, brief cold water immersion and foam rolling are used daily in sport and rehabilitation to prepare the forearm and hand, but it is not known whether, immediately after use, they change how strongly the wrist can flex and how precisely a person can control the force and the position of the wrist. This study measured all five methods in the same 56 healthy adults on separate weekly visits, immediately before and after each method, in a randomised crossover design. Outcomes included peak isometric wrist-flexion force, normalised error in a force-tracking task, normalised error in a position-tracking task, and active range of motion. The study also quantified learning across visits and the measurement properties of the variables. The trial was registered retrospectively; the reason is given in the detailed description.
Design: single-centre, randomised, five-period crossover trial; each participant received all five interventions, one per weekly visit, in an individually randomised order (simple randomisation; random permutations generated at Random.org by a person not involved in testing; the examiner was informed of the intervention on the day of the visit). Six visits in total: familiarisation and baseline measurement (visit 0) and five intervention visits. Each measurement block comprised three maximal isometric wrist-flexion contractions, three 40.2-second force-tracking trials (reference 0-70% of the peak force), one measurement of active palmar-flexion range of motion and three 40.2-second position-tracking trials (reference 65% of the range of motion), on the HAMOCODI (Hand Motor Control Diagnostic) system (S2P Ltd., Ljubljana, Slovenia; sampling rate 1000 hertz). The post-intervention block started 10-20 seconds after the intervention. Interventions (60 seconds each, right forearm flexors): static stretching to the limit of pain tolerance; assisted dynamic stretching (active elbow and wrist extension with passive assistance at the end of the range, about 15 cycles); Kinesio taping (facilitation Y-strip plus mechanical-correction I-strip); cold water immersion of the hand and forearm at 14 degrees Celsius; foam rolling of the forearm flexors. Hypotheses: H1 - dynamic stretching, Kinesio taping and foam rolling improve precise force modulation, precise position modulation and maximal strength; H2 - cold water immersion and static stretching impair them. Analysis: percentage changes (log ratios), linear mixed models with intervention, visit order and sex as fixed effects and participant as random intercept; reliability analyses of all variables. Sample: 58 volunteers attended the introductory meeting; 56 (29 men, 27 women; age 22-36 years) were randomised and analysed. The upper age limit of 35 years was a pragmatic recruitment criterion; one eligible volunteer aged 36 was included by the investigators' decision before enrolment. Retrospective registration: the study was conducted as a doctoral research project on healthy volunteers with low-risk physical interventions, and the requirement to register this type of physiological crossover study was not recognised at the time; it is registered retrospectively, before publication of the results, so that all measured outcomes are publicly documented. The ethics approval (No. 5/2022) was issued on 18 February 2022; data were collected between 4 April and 13 May 2022. The study forms the doctoral dissertation "Movement Control Modulation in Targeted Wrist Joints under Kinesiological and Physical Treatments", University of Zagreb, Faculty of Kinesiology (topic approved by the University Senate on 17 January 2023). The anonymised trial-level dataset and analysis code are available at https://urn.nsk.hr/urn:nbn:hr:117:012259.
This is the only study on the registry with Grgur Kovačić as lead sponsor.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Exclusion Criteria:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Informed consent
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Participants received 60 seconds of static stretching of the wrist flexors on one of five weekly crossover visits (order randomised per participant), with measurements immediately before and after.
Other: Static stretching
Participants received 60 seconds of assisted dynamic stretching of the wrist flexors on one of five weekly crossover visits (order randomised per participant), with measurements immediately before and after.
Other: Assisted dynamic stretching
Participants received Kinesio taping of the wrist flexors on one of five weekly crossover visits (order randomised per participant), with measurements immediately before and after application, tape on.
Other: Kinesio taping
Participants received 60 seconds of hand and forearm immersion in water at 14 degrees Celsius on one of five weekly crossover visits (order randomised per participant), with measurements immediately before and after.
Other: Cold water immersion
Participants received 60 seconds of foam rolling of the forearm flexors on one of five weekly crossover visits (order randomised per participant), with measurements immediately before and after.
Other: Foam rolling
Seated, the participant grasped the fingers and palm of the test hand with the other hand, placed the fingers and wrist in maximal extension with the forearm supinated, extended the elbow fully and held the position for one continuous bout of 60 seconds at an intensity "to the limit of pain tolerance".
Seated with the forearm supinated, the participant actively extended the elbow and wrist; at the end of the active range the other hand grasped the fingers and palm and added passive extension of the fingers and wrist to the limit of pain tolerance; the position was held for about 2 seconds and the arm returned actively over about 2 seconds, non-ballistically; about 15 cycles in 60 seconds.
Kinesio Tex Gold 5-centimetre tape applied by the examiner: a Y-strip anchored without tension on the medial epicondyle with the tails along the wrist-flexor bellies to the wrist joint line at 30-40% tension (facilitation), and an I-strip across the palmar wrist at 50-75% tension with inward pressure (mechanical correction). The tape remained on during the post-intervention measurement.
Hand and forearm immersed above the elbow in water at 14 degrees Celsius (plus or minus 1 degree) for 60 seconds; arm towel-dried before testing.
Standing, the forearm flexors were rolled on a smooth foam roller placed on a table, from distal to proximal and back, for 60 seconds, with pressure "to the limit of pain" and pauses on tender spots.
Change in Peak Isometric Wrist-Flexion Force
Peak force (newtons), defined as the highest 1-second moving average of the force signal in the best of three maximal isometric wrist-flexion contractions. Change is expressed as the percentage change from pre- to post-intervention.
Time frame: Pre-intervention and 10-20 seconds post-intervention at each of 5 intervention visits (Weeks 2-6)
Change in Normalised Error of the Force-Tracking Task
Normalised error (%) while tracking a randomly generated sinusoidal force curve with isometric wrist flexion, calculated as the root-mean-square deviation from the reference curve divided by its amplitude and averaged over three trials. Change is expressed as the percentage change from pre- to post-intervention.
Time frame: Pre-intervention and approximately 3-6 minutes post-intervention at each of 5 intervention visits (Weeks 2-6)
Change in Normalised Error of the Position-Tracking Task
Normalised error (%) while tracking a randomly generated sinusoidal wrist-angle curve with wrist flexion and extension, calculated as the root-mean-square deviation from the reference curve divided by its amplitude and averaged over three trials. Change is expressed as the percentage change from pre- to post-intervention.
Time frame: Pre-intervention and approximately 8-11 minutes post-intervention at each of 5 intervention visits (Weeks 2-6)
Change in Active Palmar-Flexion Range of Motion
Active range of palmar flexion (degrees), measured once with the built-in goniometer of the measurement system.
Time frame: Pre-intervention and approximately 6-8 minutes post-intervention at each of 5 intervention visits (Weeks 2-6)
Change of Tracking Error Across Visits in the Pre-intervention Measurements (Learning)
Slope of the normalised error of both tracking tasks across visits (percentage change per visit) from a linear mixed model of the log value.
Time frame: Pre-intervention at each of 6 weekly visits (Weeks 1-6)
Change in Mean Absolute Error of the Force-Tracking Task
Mean absolute deviation (newtons) of the produced force from the reference curve, averaged over three trials. Change is expressed as the percentage change from pre- to post-intervention.
Time frame: Pre-intervention and approximately 3-6 minutes post-intervention at each of 5 intervention visits (Weeks 2-6)
Change in Mean Absolute Error of the Position-Tracking Task
Mean absolute deviation (degrees) of the produced wrist angle from the reference curve, averaged over three trials. Change is expressed as the percentage change from pre- to post-intervention.
Time frame: Pre-intervention and approximately 8-11 minutes post-intervention at each of 5 intervention visits (Weeks 2-6)
Change in Peak Force by Repetition Position
Percentage change in peak force (newtons) from pre- to post-intervention, calculated separately for the first, second and third maximal contraction of the measurement block.
Time frame: Pre-intervention and 10-20 seconds post-intervention at each of 5 intervention visits (Weeks 2-6)
Within-Session Intraclass Correlation Coefficient
Intraclass correlation coefficient, ICC(3,1), across the three trials within each measurement occasion (unitless), reported separately for peak force and for the normalised errors of the two tracking tasks.
Time frame: 11 measurement occasions over 6 weeks (Weeks 1-6)
Between-Visit Intraclass Correlation Coefficient
Intraclass correlation coefficient, ICC(3,1), of the pre-intervention values across the six visits (unitless), reported separately for peak force and for the normalised errors of the two tracking tasks.
Time frame: Pre-intervention at each of 6 weekly visits (Weeks 1-6)
Standard Error of Measurement of Peak Force
Standard error of measurement of peak force (newtons), from the within-occasion analysis of three trials.
Time frame: 11 measurement occasions over 6 weeks (Weeks 1-6)
Standard Error of Measurement of the Normalised Tracking Errors
Standard error of measurement of the normalised error (percentage points), reported separately for the force-tracking and the position-tracking task.
Time frame: 11 measurement occasions over 6 weeks (Weeks 1-6)
Minimal Detectable Change of Peak Force
Minimal detectable change at the 95% confidence level (newtons), calculated as 1.96 x square root of 2 x standard error of measurement.
Time frame: 11 measurement occasions over 6 weeks (Weeks 1-6)
Minimal Detectable Change of the Normalised Tracking Errors
Minimal detectable change at the 95% confidence level (percentage points), reported separately for the force-tracking and the position-tracking task.
Time frame: 11 measurement occasions over 6 weeks (Weeks 1-6)
Dispersion of Individual Responses
Standard deviation (percent) of the individual pre-to-post percentage changes in peak force after each intervention.
Time frame: Pre-intervention and 10-20 seconds post-intervention at each of 5 intervention visits (Weeks 2-6)
PDFs hosted by the registry, ClinicalTrials.gov.
Plan to share: Yes — The anonymised trial-level dataset (all outcomes, all trials), the data dictionary and the analysis files are openly available in the Dabar repository of the University of Zagreb under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) licence.
Supporting information: Study protocol, Statistical analysis plan
Time frame: Available since September 2026, with no end date
Access criteria: Open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) licence; https://urn.nsk.hr/urn:nbn:hr:117:012259
From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
This study is completed, as verified in Oct 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
Get an email when the registry record changes — status, dates, results — or when someone posts here.
Sign in to followQuestions and observations about this study, from anyone following it. Not medical advice, and not a channel to the study team — their contact details are on the registry record.
Sign in to join the discussion. Reading takes no account; posting does. You choose a display name, and a pseudonym is the default.
Nothing here yet. If you are running this trial, taking part in it, or weighing whether to, this is the place to say so.