BACKGROUND: The age-related deterioration of physiological capacities such as muscle strength and balance is associated with increased dependence. Understanding the contribution of physical fitness components to functional performance facilitates the development of adequate exercise interventions aiming at preservation of function and independence of older people. The aim of the study ...

To spare more children from painful muscle biopsy, a new non-invasive diagnostic motor performance test is undergoing development. Fifteen functional items were used to measure muscle strength and muscle endurance in 68 patients (47 males, 21 females; mean age 7y 8mo, SD 2y 2mo; range 4 to 11y), who had ...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Both aging and anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction are associated with strength deficits, which can in turn influence performance of activities of daily living. Thus it is informative to understand mechanisms underlying strength deficits. Age-related declines in strength follow reductions in muscle fiber numbers and size, whereas ...

Hand, eye and foot preferences in Tunisia were examined in relation to age, gender and geographic location. We analyzed 1291 questionnaires from 653 men and 638 women, aged 8 to 74 years. Despite the cultural pressure against the use of the left hand for food-related activities, the overall frequency of ...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate test methods for hip and knee muscle weakness and gait disturbance. DESIGN: Test-retest. SETTING: Orthopedic university clinic. PARTICIPANTS: Ten young (age, 36+/-6 y) and 13 elderly (age, 69+/-8 y) healthy volunteers and 11 patients (age, 69+/-8 y) with unilateral hip osteoarthritis (OA) were tested for muscular strength. ...

STUDY DESIGN: Case control design. OBJECTIVES: To investigate whether differences exist in lower extremity muscle strength and soft tissue length between patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) and age- and gender-matched control subjects. BACKGROUND: Based on our clinical experience and emerging data, impairments such as muscular weakness surrounding the hip ...

The study objective was to analyze the integration of psychomotor coordination into other dimensions evaluated. Four morphologic variables (stature, body mass, forearm circumference and triceps skinfold) and 7 motor variables (hand tapping, standing jump, sit-ups, forward bow, bent arm hang, 3-min run and polygon backward) were assessed in a sample ...

BACKGROUND: Many authors have speculated that altered neuromuscular control and strength of the lower extremity are responsible for the gender disparity in knee ligament injury rates. HYPOTHESIS: Significant increases in normalized quadriceps and hamstrings strength and limb symmetry on single-legged hop test occur with age. No gender differences in strength ...

Changes in tongue and hand strength measurements of men with Parkinson's Disease and aged-matched controls across multiple days were examined. The Iowa Oral Performance Instrument measured tongue and hand strength during four consecutive days and at day 11. Peak tongue strength measurements occurred on day 3 with a small decrease ...

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor use may be associated with weight maintenance and sustained muscle strength (measured by grip strength) in older adults. DESIGN: Data from the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS), a community-based prospective cohort study of 5,888 older adults, were used. SETTING: Subjects were recruited from ...

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which measures of lower extremity strength and power contribute to the ability of older men and women to restore postural equilibrium using a single-step recovery following a large postural disturbance. METHODS: The postural disturbance, which has been used ...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Mental practice has been shown to be effective in increasing the force production of the abductor digiti minimi muscle in the hand. The aim of this study was to determine whether mental practice could produce strength gains in the larger ankle dorsiflexor muscles, which are important during ...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The ability to perform 20 or more one-leg heel-rises is considered a "normal" grade for muscle strength (force-generating capacity of muscle) of the ankle plantar flexors, regardless of age and sex. Because muscle strength is closely related to age and sex, the "normal" test criterion was re-evaluated ...

1. Tibia and humerus breaking strength of Lohmann Silver hybrids kept in conventional cages, furnished cages and an aviary with outdoor run were examined in two production cycles. Each trial lasted a full laying period; feeding, management and healthcare were identical for all hens. In both trials bone strength was ...

Present purposes were to examine the characteristics of controlled force exertion in 28 developmentally delayed young people (14 men, 14 women), and sex differences compared to 28 normal young students (14 men, 14 women). The subjects matched their submaximal grip strength to changing demand values displayed in a bar chart ...

The purpose of this study was to determine the correlation between quantitative (cross sectional areas) evaluation of the posterior cuff muscles and mechanical strength in asymptomatic shoulders with special reference to aging. The cross-sectional area of the combined infraspinatus and teres minor muscles were measured, in the sagittal oblique magnetic ...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Hand function weakens with age in both men and women, especially after the age of 65. As the number of older people increases, more older adults may have sensorimotor impairment, which affects upper extremity (UE) performance and thus independence in the activities of daily life. The purpose ...

The twitch of the triceps surae muscle (TS), which characterizes the contractile properties independently of volition, differs in amplitude, but not in time course, when evoked in pre or postpubertal children. The aim of the present study was to compare the TS twitch contractile properties in prepubertal children (7 to ...

In order to develop a patent tissue-engineered blood vessel that grossly resembles native tissue, required culture times in most studies exceed 8 weeks. For the sake of shortening the maturation period of the constructs, we have used deformation as the basic index for mechanical environment control. A new bioreactor with ...

Decreased muscle strength with aging is associated with functional disability in older adults. However, few studies have longitudinally evaluated the rate of muscle strength loss and the risk factors for the loss in older men. This study examined the patterns and determinants of muscle strength change with aging in a ...

The influence of age on limb vasodilator capacity in women is unclear. The objectives of this study were to characterize and compare age-associated changes in forearm and calf peak vascular conductance (VC(peak); a functional index of arterial structure) in women and to identify physiological characteristics predictive of variation in limb-specific ...

OBJECTIVE: To assess the intra-rater (between occasions) test-retest reliability of isokinetic knee muscle strength measurements in subjects with chronic poststroke hemiparesis and to define limits for the smallest change that indicates real (clinical) improvements for stroke patients. SUBJECTS: Fifty men and women (mean age 58 +/- 6.4 years) 6-46 months ...

The aim of this study was to investigate a possible relation between power performance of the Wingate test (WT) and isometric leg strength (ILS) and explosive leg strength (ELS) characteristics in young men and women with different physical fitness levels. A total of 166 subjects, including 98 young men and ...

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to determine whether the depth of insertion through the far cortex of self-tapping screws significantly affects pullout strength. DESIGN: Fifty, Synthes, 3.5-mm, self-tapping screws were inserted into synthetic bone blocks and divided into 5 groups. Group 1 had screws with their tips inserted ...

Heating titanium structures is assumed to relieve tensions induced by the casting process as well as possibly optimizing some mechanical properties. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the effect of thermal treatments on tensile strength of commercially pure titanium (CP Ti) and Ti-6Al-4V alloy. Thirty dumbbell rods, with ...

BACKGROUND: Whiplash may damage structures within the neck that can affect position sense. Deep neck flexor muscle retraining may improve position sense. The current study compared range of motion and position sense in whiplash and control subjects and investigated the effects of a muscle training session on position sense. METHODS: ...

PURPOSE: To compare the strength and endurance of knee extensors in subjects after paralytic poliomyelitis as well as to extend the comparison to healthy subjects. METHOD: Twenty subjects after poliomyelitis with new symptoms (SYM group), 10 without new symptoms (ASYM group) and 15 healthy controls were included. To determine strength, ...

The ability to develop adequate quadriceps muscle power may be highly predictive of subsequent disability among older persons. Rate as well as quantitative (sarcopenia) and qualitative (among other slowing of muscles) contributors to that age-related power decline are poorly known. The relationship of quadriceps maximal short-term power (P(max)) and corresponding ...

OBJECTIVE: To describe abdominal muscle performance as measured by the double leg-lowering test (DLLT) in healthy subjects. DESIGN: Repeated measures. SETTING: Academic laboratory. PARTICIPANTS: A sample of 100 healthy volunteers (50 men, 50 women; age range, 18-29 y). INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Repeat measurements of the DLLT to ...

PURPOSE: To evaluate bone properties, muscle strength and the relationship between the two, in young (7.0-17.7 years) haemophilia patients (h) and healthy boys (c). SUBJECTS: Twenty-seven boys with severe haemophilia and 33 healthy boys, of similar age, body mass, height, (mean +/- sd for h and c, respectively: 11.2 +/- ...

Contralateral muscular imbalances have been suggested to increase the risk of lower extremity injury. Previous groups have assessed strength of the quadriceps and hamstring muscle groups; however, no previous authors have compared bilateral hip-abductor muscular performance. To examine the strength and fatigability of the hip abductors in the dominant and ...

BACKGROUND: Free style and Greco-Roman are two types of wrestling. [figure: see text] OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to examine the maximal isometric strength of cervical extension (ISCE) and the maximal isometric strength of cervical flexion (ISCF) in two groups of elite wrestlers and a group of non-athletic ...

OBJECTIVE: Single fiber EMG (SFEMG) is a potent electrophysiological method to evaluate impaired neuromuscular transmission, and allows sensitive diagnosis of neuromuscular transmission abnormalities such as myasthenia gravis. The jitter and fiber density values are different for various muscles and age groups and the reference values increase with age. In this ...

PURPOSE: To investigate the associations of measures of frailty to prevalent age-related maculopathy (ARM). DESIGN: Cross-sectional population-based study. METHODS: Time to walk a measured course (gait-time), handgrip strength, peak expiratory flow rate, ability to stand from a sitting position without using arms, self-reported co-morbidities, and ARM were assessed at the ...

CONTEXT: Muscle fatigue is generally categorized in 2 ways: that caused by peripheral weakness (peripheral fatigue) and that caused by a progressive failure of voluntary neural drive (central fatigue). Numerous variables have been studied in conjunction with fatigue protocols, including postural stability, maximum voluntary contraction force, and reaction time. When ...

The purpose of the study was to examine age-related differences in electromyographic (EMG) responses to transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) during functional isometric contractions in left and right hands. EMG responses were recorded from the first dorsal interosseus muscle following TMS in 10 young (26.6 +/- 1.3 yr) and 10 old ...

This study examined the variability and regularity of maximum isometric moment production of the plantar flexors in young and old subjects. It was hypothesized that in the development of maximum isometric moments there would be greater regularity in the moment profiles for older subjects compared with young subjects, due to ...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Although a wide variety of protocols are available for evaluating skeletal muscle fatigue resistance, they often necessitate important technological resources or are too complicated for elderly subjects. We present here a new test, designed for elderly persons, based on maintaining maximal voluntary grip strength as long as ...

An experimental study on the mechanical behavior of human dentin and the influence of age was conducted. Beams with rectangular cross-section were sectioned from the coronal dentin of virgin extracted molars (N = 76) that were obtained from (N = 70) patients between 17 and 80 years of age. The ...

Force control ability was investigated in 10 males and 10 females, between 5 and 15 years old with spastic hemiplegia (mild and moderate hand dysfunction), and an aged-matched control group (eight males, 12 females). An isometric force production task at five different levels of maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) was performed. ...

The present study examined the relationship between upper- and lower-limb laterality and the difference in kinaesthetic function between lower limbs. A total of 360 early and late middle-aged people from rural areas in Japan participated in the study. The first purpose was to describe upper- and lower-limb lateral preferences. Approximately ...

OBJECTIVE: Little is known about how specific radiographic features are related to hand strength in osteoarthritis (OA). This study examined associations of radiographic variables with pinch and grip strength among individuals with radiographic hand OA. METHODS: Participants (n = 700, 80% female, mean age 69 years) were part of a ...

The present study was designed to determine the resultant force acting on the hip joint during walking using a new dynamic analysis method. Our model utilized joint motion, ground reaction force, and muscle strength data from 18 women (6 normal women aged 20-24 years, 6 normal women aged 50-57 years, ...

BACKGROUND: In the aging process, loss of muscle is relatively continuous, but the initiation, timing, and amount of muscle loss that relate to functional compromise are poorly described. Also poorly understood is whether strength and functioning in aging are related to the amount of lean mass and its change as ...

The effect of aging on mechanical and electromyographic characteristics of ankle joint muscles was investigated in 11 young (mean age 24 years) and 12 elderly (mean age 77 years) males. Maximal and submaximal isometric voluntary torques were measured during ankle plantarflexion and dorsiflexion. Electromyographic activities of triceps surae and tibialis ...

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of grip strength as an index of nutritional status in 6-10 y old children. Seven hundred and eighty seven children (364 boys and 423 girls) in the age group of 6 to 10 y were selected from private and municipal ...

The rate of motor unit (MU) loss and its influence on the progression of sarcopenia is not well understood. Therefore, the main purpose of this study was to estimate and compare numbers of MUs in the tibialis anterior (TA) of young men ( approximately 25 years) and two groups of ...

This study compared physical characteristics (body height, body mass [BM], body fat [BF], and free fatty mass [FFM]), one repetition maximum bench-press (1RM (BP)), jumping explosive strength (VJ), handball throwing velocity, power-load relationship of the leg and arm extensor muscles, 5- and 15-m sprint running time, and running endurance in ...

AIMS: To establish normal reference values for handgrip strength in healthy adult subjects using hand dynamometry. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Descriptive study of 517 healthy volunteers (267 females and 229 males) aged 17-97 years. Grip strength was measured using two different handgrip dynamometers. Three consecutive measurements were made in both the ...

BACKGROUND: Gymnasts usually start intensive training from early childhood. The impact of such strenuous training on the musculoskeletal system is not clear. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the relation between muscle strength of the ankle joint and foot structure in gymnasts. METHODS: The study population comprised 20 high level male gymnasts and ...