{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,2]],"date-time":"2026-07-02T06:34:58Z","timestamp":1782974098432,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":32,"publisher":"Wiley","issue":"6","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,24]],"date-time":"2026-05-24T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1779580800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,24]],"date-time":"2026-05-24T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1779580800000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/doi.wiley.com\/10.1002\/tdm_license_1.1"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["onlinelibrary.wiley.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Journal Orthopaedic Research"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,6]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>ABSTRACT<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:p>\n                    Our primary aim was to establish a novel surgical immobilization approach to induce a persistent ankle plantar\u2010flexion contracture in the Wistar rat. A stainless steel suture was placed in experimental animals (\n                    <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u2009=\u200914) and pulled taut between the calcaneal bone and the knee joint, restricting dorsal\u2010flexion while still allowing for limited ankle plantar\u2010flexion, muscle activity, and loading. The immobilization method was well tolerated; adverse events were limited and manageable. After 4 weeks, immobilization was released by cutting the suture. After 4 weeks of immobilization, ankle angle at 5 Nmm passive torque shifted 48\u00b0 towards plantar\u2010flexion, plantar\u2010flexion torque and stiffness at 55\u00b0 ankle angle increased 4.5 and eightfold, respectively (\n                    <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u2009=\u20098). Exploratory tissue analyses ex\u2010vivo revealed significant atrophy of the medial gastrocnemius muscle\u2010belly (34% smaller mass than controls,\n                    <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u2009=\u20094). Ankle angle at 5 Nmm, torque, and stiffness at 55\u00b0 angle showed no signs of recovery 4 weeks post\u2010release of the immobilization (\n                    <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u2009=\u20093). Morphological and mechanical assessments at this timepoint revealed persistent medial\u2010gastrocnemius atrophy (19% smaller mass and 30% lower distal\u2010tendon length in experimental animals (\n                    <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u2009=\u20093) compared to controls,\n                    <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u2009=\u20094). Also, passive and active length\u2010force relationships of medial gastrocnemius were shifted towards lower lengths (i.e., plantar\u2010flexion) compared to controls. Taken together, our novel surgical approach elicits an ankle plantar\u2010flexion contracture that appears to persist for at least 4 weeks, providing a window for an intervention study. This model may be used to improve our understanding of the biomechanical, morphological and neurological changes following joint contractures, and to evaluate therapeutic interventions.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1002\/jor.70228","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,25]],"date-time":"2026-05-25T05:15:51Z","timestamp":1779686151000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["A Novel Surgical Approach to Induce an Ankle Joint Contracture in Rats"],"prefix":"10.1002","volume":"44","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5261-1466","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Guido","family":"Geusebroek","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Movement Sciences, Faculty of Behavioral and Movement Sciences Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Movement Sciences Amsterdam The Netherlands"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jaap","family":"van Die\u00ebn","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Movement Sciences, Faculty of Behavioral and Movement Sciences Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Movement Sciences Amsterdam The Netherlands"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Wendy","family":"Noort","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Movement Sciences, Faculty of Behavioral and Movement Sciences Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Movement Sciences Amsterdam The Netherlands"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Giovanni","family":"Ramdin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Movement Sciences, Faculty of Behavioral and Movement Sciences Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Movement Sciences Amsterdam The Netherlands"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Han","family":"Houdijk","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Movement Sciences University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen Groningen The Netherlands"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Huub","family":"Maas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Human Movement Sciences, Faculty of Behavioral and Movement Sciences Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Movement Sciences Amsterdam The Netherlands"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"311","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,24]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_2_9_2_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1097\/BLO.0b013e3180308456"},{"key":"e_1_2_9_3_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"G.Geusebroek J.Buczny H.Houdijk K. 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