Impacts and Mechanisms of Age and Muscle Fatigue on Postural Control and Force Control
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: Age, Muscle fatigue.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Aging, Muscle Fatigue. Basic parameters: 20 years — 85 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Taiwan
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Overview
Muscle fatigue is one of the clinical symptoms in elderly people and demonstrates task dependency and muscle dependency. Muscle fatigue has been shown to negatively impact postural control, physical activity, and quality of life. However, the evidence for the influence of muscle fatigue on postural control is limited and inconsistent in elderly people. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the impacts of aging and muscle fatigue on postural control and gait performance with fatiguing exercises of upper and lower extremities.
Detailed description
This study aims to investigate the effects of muscle fatigue on postural control and gait performance in healthy older adults (≥65 years) and young adults (20-40 years). Neuromuscular fatigue has been associated with postural instability, but its influence on gait and potential age-related differences remain unclear. Therefore, this study will compare fatigue-induced changes in motor performance between age groups and examine whether fatigue of the upper and lower extremities produces similar functional effects.
Healthy older adults and young adults will be recruited from the community. Eligible participants must be in good health, able to walk independently, demonstrate normal cognitive function, and provide informed consent. Individuals with neurological, cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, or other conditions that may affect motor performance will be excluded.
A repeated-measures design will be used. The study will involve two laboratory sessions separated by at least one week. Participants will undergo pre-test assessments, a fatiguing exercise protocol, and post-test assessments. Motor outcomes-including maximal voluntary isometric contraction, postural control, and gait performance-will be measured before and after the fatiguing exercises. Fatiguing exercises will consist of repeated cycles of maximal contractions with rest periods, while heart rate and perceived exertion are monitored to ensure safety. The protocol will terminate if exertion reaches a predefined threshold or heart rate exceeds the age-predicted maximum.
Surface electromyography and electrical stimulation will be used to assess neuromuscular function. Postural control will be evaluated using a force plate under multiple standing conditions, and gait parameters will be measured while participants walk at comfortable and fast speeds. Statistical analyses will use repeated-measures mixed-model ANOVAs to examine the effects of age group and fatigue on motor outcomes.
Interventions
- Other Age
We compare the young and the old groups - Other Muscle fatigue
We compare the results before and after muscle fatigue
Primary outcome measures
- Maximal force [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol) and immediately after the fatigue protocol]
- Walking speed [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol) and immediately after the fatigue protocol]
- Step Length [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol) and immediately after the fatigue protocol]
- Cadence [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol) and immediately after the fatigue protocol]
- Single Support Time [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol) and immediately after the fatigue protocol]
- Double Support Time [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol) and immediately after the fatigue protocol]
- Swing Time [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol) and immediately after the fatigue protocol]
- COP Velocity in Balance Tasks [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol) and immediately after the fatigue protocol]
- COP Area in Balance Tasks [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol) and immediately after the fatigue protocol]
Secondary outcome measures (3)
- Oxygenated hemoglobin [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol), during the fatigue protocol, and immediately after the fatigue protocol.]
- Total hemoglobin [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol), during the fatigue protocol, and immediately after the fatigue protocol.]
- Deoxygenated hemoglobin [Time frame: Baseline (pre-fatigue protocol), during the fatigue protocol, and immediately after the fatigue protocol.]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- 20 to 40 years (young), and 60-85 years (old)
- walk independently
- able to follow commands (Mini Mental Status Exam (MMSE) scores greater than 21
- able and willing to provide informed consent.
Exclusion criteria
- pregnancy
- neurologic, psychiatric, cardiac, vascular, pulmonary, musculoskeletal, immune, integumentary disease or disorder which might influence this study
- any current loss of sensation in the arms, wrists, hands, fingers, hips, knees, ankles or toes
- any pain at the time of testing
- any restriction in range of motion of lower extremity.
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: Yes
Study design
- Observational model
- Cohort
Study locations
Taiwan · 2 centers
- Chang Gung Memorial Hospital — Taoyuan
- Chang Gung University — Taoyuan
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07405060 · 202200723A3