Evaluation of Ankle Joint Proprioception and Balance in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes and Healthy Subjects

Abstract

Background: Joint proprioception plays an important role in limb movement and awareness of position sense. Diabetes has a lot of complications such as loss of sensory function, which can lead to impaired balance, thus the aim of this study to evaluated joint proprioception and balance in diabetic patients. Methods: Twenty type II diabetic patients and 20 healthy controls participated in this case-controlled study. Standing balance in various positions and ankle joint proprioception were measured. The data were analyzed using MannWhitney and chi-square test. Results: It was observed that the ankle joint proprioception and balance in diabetic patients were significantly less than control groups. (P<0.05) Conclusion: Joint proprioception and balance functions impair in diabetic patients. Thus improvement of joint proprioception for prevention of fall is important.

Keywords

• Type 2 diabetes
• Balance
• Proprioception