Abstract
Purpose
This study aimed to examine the effect of age on the mechanical properties, muscle size, and muscle quality in the upper and lower limb and trunk muscles.
Methods
We evaluated the shear modulus (G), muscle thickness (MT), and echo intensity (EI) of the upper and lower limb and trunk muscles of 83 healthy women (21–83-year-old). The G values of some limb muscles were measured in relaxed and stretched positions.
Results
Regarding the effect of age on G at the distinct positions, the G of the upper limb muscles were not significantly correlated with age in the relaxed and stretched positions. In contrast, the G of the iliacus showed a significant negative correlation in both positions. Additionally, the G of the rectus femoris had a significant negative correlation only in the relaxed position. Regarding differences among body parts, the G of the lower limb and oblique abdominal muscles showed a significant negative correlation, but no correlation in the upper limb, rectus abdominis, and back muscles. Moreover, MT showed a significant negative correlation with age in the lower limb, abdominal, and erector spinae muscles, but no correlation was detected in the upper limb and lumbar multifidus muscles. EI had a significant positive correlation in all the muscles.
Conclusion
The effect of age on G depended on body parts, and the G of the lower limb and oblique abdominal muscles negatively associated with age. Additionally, G in the relaxed position may be more susceptible to aging than G in the stretched position.
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Data not available due to ethical restrictions.
Code availability
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Abbreviations
- G:
-
Shear modulus
- MT:
-
Muscle thickness
- EI:
-
Echo intensity
- SSP:
-
Supraspinatus
- ISP:
-
Infraspinatus
- DT:
-
Middle part of the deltoid
- BB:
-
Long head of the biceps brachii
- UT:
-
Upper trapezius
- PM:
-
Clavicular region of the pectoralis major
- Pm:
-
Pectoralis minor
- IL:
-
Iliacus
- RF:
-
Rectus femoris
- GM:
-
Gluteus maximus
- BF:
-
Biceps femoris
- RA:
-
Rectus abdominis
- EO:
-
External oblique
- IO:
-
Internal oblique
- TrA:
-
Transverse abdominis
- ThEL:
-
Thoracic erector spinae
- LEL:
-
Lumbar erector spinae
- MF:
-
Lumbar multifidus
- ROI:
-
Region of interest
- V:
-
Shear wave velocity
- ρ:
-
Muscle density
- ICC:
-
Intraclass correlation coefficient
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Acknowledgements
We would like to thank Ms. Itsuda and Ms. Nakazato for data collection and Ms. Ibuki and Editage (www.editage.jp) for their assistance with the English language editing.
Funding
This study was supported by a joint research fund from the Wacoal Holdings Corporation.
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All authors have made substantial contributions to the conception and design of the study, collection, analysis, or interpretation of data. Moreover, all authors revised the manuscript critically for important intellectual content and read and approved the final manuscript.
The specific contributions of the authors are as follows:
Study conception and design: KK, MY, HT, JU, NI. Acquisition of data: KK, MY, HS, SO. Analysis and interpretation of data: KK, MY, HT, MO, JU, NI. Drafting the paper or critical revision: KK, MY, HT, MO, JU, HS, SO, NI.
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Kobayashi, K., Yagi, M., Tateuchi, H. et al. Effect of age on shear modulus, muscle thickness, echo intensity of the upper limb, lower limb, and trunk muscles in healthy women. Eur J Appl Physiol 123, 797–807 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-022-05099-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-022-05099-8