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Neuromechanical response of the upper body to unexpected perturbations during gait initiation in young and older adults

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Abstract

Background

Control of upper body motion deteriorates with ageing leading to impaired ability to preserve balance during gait, but little is known on the contribution of the upper body to preserve balance in response to unexpected perturbations during locomotor transitions, such as gait initiation.

Aim

To investigate differences between young and older adults in the ability to modify the trunk kinematics and muscle activity following unexpected waist lateral perturbations during gait initiation.

Methods

Ten young (25 ± 2 years) and ten older adults (73 ± 5 years) initiated locomotion from stance while a lateral pull was randomly applied to the pelvis. Two force plates were used to define the feet centre-of-pressure displacement. Angular displacement of the trunk in the frontal plane was obtained through motion analysis. Surface electromyography of cervical and thoracic erector spinae muscles was recorded bilaterally.

Results

A lower trunk lateral bending towards the stance leg side in the preparatory phase of gait initiation was observed in older participants following perturbation. Right thoracic muscle activity was increased in response to the perturbation during the initial phase of gait initiation in young (+ 68%) but not in older participants (+ 7%).

Conclusions

The age-related reduction in trunk movement could indicate a more rigid behaviour of the upper body employed by older compared to young individuals in response to unexpected perturbations preceding the initiation of stepping. Older adults’ delayed activation of thoracic muscles could suggest impaired reactive mechanisms that may potentially lead to a fall in the early stages of the gait initiation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome “Foro Italico”, Piazza Lauro De Bosis 6, 00135, Rome, Italy

    Lorenzo Rum, Giuseppe Vannozzi & Andrea Macaluso

  2. Cardiff Metropolitan University, Cyncoed Campus, Cyncoed Road, Cardiff, CF23 6XD, UK

    Luca Laudani

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  1. Lorenzo Rum
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  2. Giuseppe Vannozzi
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  3. Andrea Macaluso
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  4. Luca Laudani
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Contributions

LR and LL conceived and designed the research. LR conducted the experiments under LL’s supervision. LR, GV and LL analysed data and all authors interpreted the experimental results. LR and LL wrote the manuscript. All authors edited, revised and approved the final version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Lorenzo Rum.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee (Cardiff Metropolitan University ethics committee—17/4/02R) and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Rum, L., Vannozzi, G., Macaluso, A. et al. Neuromechanical response of the upper body to unexpected perturbations during gait initiation in young and older adults. Aging Clin Exp Res 33, 909–919 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40520-020-01592-2

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