RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to determine the influence of manipulative treatment of sacroiliac joint (SIJ) hypomobility on the ability to maintain static balance of the body. METHODS: We compared displacements of the center of pressure (COP) in 2 groups of students of the University of Physical Education: the experimental group (30 people exhibiting SIJ hypomobility) and the control group (29 people without SIJ hypomobility). A manipulation was performed in the experimental group and a placebo procedure in the control group. Sacroiliac joint hypomobility was diagnosed by the following SIJ mobility tests: forward flexion test, Gillet test, long sitting test, lower limb adduction test. These and podometric tests were performed on all participants twice-before and after the procedure. The influence of experimental manipulation was examined by applying repeated-measures analysis of variance, and comparisons were made with Student's t test for dependent and independent samples and nonparametric tests. RESULTS: A statistically significant difference between before and after treatment was found in the experimental group (P < .05) in terms of COP pathway, COP pathway area, and average COP speed. Furthermore, the groups differed in before-treatment values of these parameters in favor of the control group, but after-treatment measurement revealed normalization of the levels of these characteristics in the experimental group to the level of the control group. CONCLUSION: As a result of SIJ manipulation, parameters related to the ability to maintain balance improved in the experimental group.