Can vastus medialis oblique be preferentially activated? A systematic review of electromyographic studies.

Debate exists as to whether the vastus medialis oblique (VMO) can be activated to a greater degree than the vastus lateralis to produce preferential strengthening. This systematic review aims to determine whether preferential activation of VMO can be achieved by altering lower limb joint orientation or muscular co-contraction. A search of pertinent specialist journals and of the electronic databases AMED, CINAHL, the Cochrane database, EMBASE, ovid Medline, Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro), PubMed, and Zetoc from their inception to February 2008 was undertaken.