The effect of a task-specific training on upper limb performance and kinematics while performing a reaching task in a fatigued state

Frédérique Dupuis; Félix Prud'Homme; Arielle Tougas; Alexandre Campeau-Lecours; Catherine Mercier; Jean-Sébastien Roy

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0297283

The effect of a task-specific training on upper limb performance and kinematics while performing a reaching task in a fatigued state

PLoS One. 2024 Jan 22;19(1):e0297283. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0297283. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Frédérique Dupuis^{1

2}, Félix Prud'Homme^{1

2}, Arielle Tougas^{1

2}, Alexandre Campeau-Lecours^{1

2

3}, Catherine Mercier^{1

2}, Jean-Sébastien Roy^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
² Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation and Social Integration (Cirris), Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
³ Faculty of Science and Engineering, Université Laval, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.

Abstract

Background: Fatigue impacts motor performance and upper limb kinematics. It is of interest to study whether it is possible to minimize the potentially detrimental effects of fatigue with prevention programs.

Objective: To determine the effect of task-specific training on upper limb kinematics and motor performance when reaching in a fatigued state.

Methods: Thirty healthy participants were recruited (Training group n = 15; Control group n = 15). Both groups took part in two evaluation sessions (Day 1 and Day 5) during which they performed a reaching task (as quickly and accurately as possible) in two conditions (rested and fatigued). During the reaching task, joint kinematics and motor performance (accuracy and speed) were evaluated. The Training group participated in three task-specific training sessions between Day 1 and Day 5; they trained once a day, for three days. The Control group did not perform any training. A three-way non-parametric ANOVA for repeated measures (Nonparametric Analysis of Longitudinal Data; NparLD) was used to assess the impact of the training (Condition [within subject]: rested, fatigued; Day [within subject]: Day 1 vs. Day 5 and Group [between subjects]: Training vs. Control).

Results: After the training period, the Training group significantly improved their reaching speed compared to the Control group (Day x Group p < .01; Time effect: Training group = p < .01, Control group p = .20). No between-group difference was observed with respect to accuracy. The Training group showed a reduction in contralateral trunk rotation and lateral trunk flexion in Day 2 under the fatigue condition (Group x Day p < .04; Time effect: Training group = p < .01, Control group = p < .59).

Conclusion: After the 3-day training, participants demonstrated improved speed and reduced reliance on trunk compensations to complete the task under fatigue conditions. Task-specific training could help minimizing some effects of fatigue.

Copyright: © 2024 Dupuis et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

MeSH terms

Biomechanical Phenomena
Control Groups
Defense Mechanisms*
Fatigue*
Humans
Upper Extremity

Grants and funding

This study was funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (RGPIN-2023-04929). Frederique Dupuis is supported by a scholarship from the Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR). Jean-Sebastien Roy is supported by salary awards from Fonds de recherche Québec – Santé (FRQS) and Catherine Mercier holds the Canada Research Chair in Sensorimotor Rehabilitation and Pain and the University Laval Research Chair in Cerebral Palsy. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.