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Age-related differences in the functional demand placed on the lumbar spine during walking in healthy older versus younger men

Duncan, Michael
Griffen, Corbin
Renshaw, Derek
Tallis, Jason
Hattersley, John
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Abstract
>Age-related declines in the musculoskeletal system may place additional demands on the lumbar spine during everyday activities such as walking. This study aimed to investigate age-related differences in the functional demand (FD) of walking on the lumbar spine in older and younger adults. A motion analysis system with integrated force plates was used to acquire kinematic and kinetic data on 12 older (67.3 ± 6.0 years) and 12 younger (24.7 ± 3.1 years) healthy men during walking at a self-selected speed along a 10 m walkway. Isokinetic dynamometry was used to acquire the maximal joint moment capacity of the lumbar spine. The FD of the lumbar spine was calculated as the muscle moment during key phases of the gait cycle (GC) relative to the maximum moment capacity of the lumbar spine. The difference in FD between age groups was not significant (p = 0.07) and there were no significant differences between the young group (YG) and older group (OG) for any individual phase in the GC. Despite the lack of statistical significance, the results indicate that a practical difference may exist, as walking was approximately 20% more functionally demanding on the lumbar spine in the OG compared to the YG. Therefore, older adults may employ modified gait strategies to reduce mechanical load whilst walking to fall within the limits of their maximal force-producing capacity in the lumbar spine, which may have implications for injury risk.
Citation
Dallaway A, Duncan M, Griffen C, Renshaw D, Tallis J, Hattersley J. (2024) Age-Related Differences in the Functional Demand Placed on the Lumbar Spine during Walking in Healthy Older versus Younger Men. Geriatrics, 9(5):108. https://doi.org/10.3390/geriatrics9050108
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Journal article
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en
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© 2024 The Authors. Published by MDPI. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence. The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.3390/geriatrics9050108
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2308-3417
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2308-3417
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This research was jointly funded by University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust & Coventry University and carried out with the support of the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Coventry and Warwickshire Clinical Research Facility.
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