Gabel CP, Guy B, Mokhtarinia HR, Melloh M. Slacklining: A narrative review on the origins, neuromechanical models and therapeutic use. World J Orthop 2021; 12(6): 360-375 [PMID: 34189074 DOI: 10.5312/wjo.v12.i6.360]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Charles Philip Gabel, BPhty, MSc, PhD, Physiotherapist, Research Scientist, Research Section, Access Physiotherapy, 12 Grandview DR, Coolum Beach 4573, Australia. cp.gabel@bigpond.com
Research Domain of This Article
Rehabilitation
Article-Type of This Article
Review
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Orthop. Jun 18, 2021; 12(6): 360-375 Published online Jun 18, 2021. doi: 10.5312/wjo.v12.i6.360
Slacklining: A narrative review on the origins, neuromechanical models and therapeutic use
Charles Philip Gabel, Bernard Guy, Hamid Reza Mokhtarinia, Markus Melloh
Charles Philip Gabel, Research Section, Access Physiotherapy, Coolum Beach 4573, Australia
Bernard Guy, Ecole des Mines de Saint-Etienne, Saint Etienne 4200, Loire, France
Hamid Reza Mokhtarinia, Department of Ergonomics and Physiotherapy, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran 12345, Iran
Markus Melloh, School of Health Professions, Institute of Health Sciences, Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Winterthur 8410, Switzerland
Markus Melloh, School of Medicine, The University of Western Australia, Perth WA 6009, Australia
Markus Melloh, Curtin Medical School, Curtin University, Bentley WA 6102, Australia
Author contributions: Gabel CP proposed the concept and outline; Melloh M provided critical input for the manuscript content with specific relevance to physiology, biopsychosocial health, clinical guidelines and current medical models, references and editing of the manuscript; Mokhtarinia HR provided critical input for the manuscript content with specific relevance to therapeutic and rehabilitation aspects, physiology, references and editing of the manuscript; Guy B provided specific vital input regarding the aspects of time and fundamental physics as well as referencing and editing of the manuscript; all authors contributed to writing the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: No author has a conflict of interest for this study.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Charles Philip Gabel, BPhty, MSc, PhD, Physiotherapist, Research Scientist, Research Section, Access Physiotherapy, 12 Grandview DR, Coolum Beach 4573, Australia. cp.gabel@bigpond.com
Received: December 4, 2020 Peer-review started: December 4, 2020 First decision: January 24, 2021 Revised: January 27, 2021 Accepted: May 19, 2021 Article in press: May 19, 2021 Published online: June 18, 2021 Processing time: 189 Days and 7.8 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: Slacklining is an ancient activity; however, modern scientific literature is very recent and limited. This paper explores slacklining’s origins to provide background on its evolution and incorporation into prehabilitation and rehabilitation. Existing mechanical models and neurophysiological explanations are considered, summarised, and their applications and knowledge-gaps highlighted. Consequently, the need for improved understanding and descriptive and mathematical models are highlighted to ensure a multi-tiered understanding of slacklining’s unique and complex neuro-motoric requirements for its multiple applications, including human functional movement. With understanding slacklining’s history and fundamentals comes the potential for future broader applications for functional movement, prosthesis, automation, and machine-learning.
