Acute Effects of Foam Rolling on Range of Motion in Healthy Adults: A Systematic Review with Multilevel Meta-analysis.
Level 1 - systematic review of randomized trials
Systematic review with multilevel meta-analysis of 26 trials
PubMed 31628662 · doi:10.1007/s40279-019-01205-7
What was done
A systematic review and multilevel meta-analysis using a robust random effects meta-regression model evaluated the acute effects of foam rolling (FR) on joint range of motion (ROM) in healthy adults. The analysis synthesized standardized mean differences (SMD) comparing FR to no-exercise controls (NEX) and stretching across 26 trials rated as high methodological quality on the PEDro scale. Moderator analyses tested the influence of treatment duration, rolling speed, targeted muscle, active versus passive ROM testing, sex, BMI, and study design.
What was found
Foam rolling produced a significant, large increase in acute ROM compared to NEX (SMD 0.74, 95% CI 0.42 to 1.01, p = 0.0002). However, FR was not superior to stretching (SMD -0.02, 95% CI -0.73 to 0.69, p = 0.95). FR with vibration did not significantly differ from NEX (SMD 6.75, 95% CI -76.4 to 89.9, p = 0.49) or non-vibration FR (SMD 0.66, 95% CI -1.5 to 2.8, p = 0.32). Most moderators (duration, speed, BMI, muscle group, testing mode) had no significant effect (p > 0.05), though FR appeared less effective in men (p < 0.05).
Why it matters
This review establishes that foam rolling is an effective intervention for immediate ROM improvements that performs equivalently to stretching, regardless of variation in rolling speed or duration.
Limits
The abstract does not report the total participant count across the 26 trials. Findings are limited to immediate/acute outcomes in healthy adults and cannot be generalized to chronic flexibility adaptations or clinical populations. Analysis of vibration-assisted rolling was constrained by very few studies resulting in extremely wide confidence intervals.
Cited by
- supports Scientific research shows that foam rolling helps improve range of motion, increase blood flow, and desensitize painful tissues.