The impact of ankle movements on venous return flow: A comparative study

Abstract

Objective To compare the haemodynamic effects of different ankle movements combined ankle and toe movements on the femoral vein of the lower extremity. Methods 28 healthy volunteers participated in the study. Doppler ultrasound was used to measure peak systolic velocity and time-averaged mean velocity of the common femoral vein during ankle dorsiflexion, ankle dorsiflexion with simultaneous toe extension, ankle plantarflexion, and ankle plantarflexion with simultaneous toe flexion. Results In comparison to the resting state, both ankle alone or ankle combined with toe movement showed statistically significant differences ( p < .01). However, there were no significant difference in the velocity of the common femoral vein between ankle alone and ankle combined with toe movement ( p > .05). It is noteworthy that dorsiflexion of the ankle resulted in the highest peak velocity of blood flow. Conclusion The impact of ankle movement, with or without toe movement, the velocity of the common femoral vein is not significantly correlated.