Age and load compliance alter time to task failure for a submaximal fatiguing contraction with the lower leg

Age-related effects of neuromuscular fatigue and acute recovery responses on maximal and rapid torque measures of the leg extensors and flexors

PURPOSE

To examine the effects of neuromuscular fatigue and recovery on maximal and rapid torque characteristics in young and old men for the leg extensors and flexors.

METHODS

Twenty-one young (age = 24.8 years) and 19 old (72.1 years) men performed maximal voluntary contractions (MVCs) before and at 0, 7, 15, and 30 min following an intermittent submaximal fatigue task. Outcome measures included endurance time, maximal (peak torque; PT) and rapid (absolute and normalized rate of torque development; RTD and nRTD) torque characteristics.

RESULTS

The old men had greater endurance times than the young men. Differential recovery patterns were observed for PT, and early and late RTD phases between the leg extensor and flexor muscle groups such that the early rapid torque variables and the flexors demonstrated slower recovery compared to later rapid torque variables and the extensors. The normalized RTD variables were reduced less after the fatigue task and differential muscle and age effects were observed where the flexors were reduced more at the early phase (nRTD1/6) compared to the extensors, however, for the later phase (nRTD2/3) the young men exhibited a greater reduction compared to the old men.

CONCLUSIONS

Dissimilar fatigue recovery patterns across different phases of RTD, lower limb muscles, and age groups may have important fatigue-related performance and injury risk implications across the adult lifespan.

Balance Control Deficits are Associated With Diminished Ankle Force Sense, Not Position Sense, in Athletes with Chronic Ankle Instability

OBJECTIVES

To compare balance control and ankle proprioception between athletes with and without chronic ankle instability (CAI). A further objective was to explore the relationship between balance control performance and ankle proprioception in athletes with CAI.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study.

SETTINGS

Sports Rehabilitation Laboratory.

PARTICIPANTS

Eighty-eight recreational athletes (47 CAI and 41 healthy control) were recruited.

INTERVENTIONS

No applicable.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Balance control performance was assessed using the sway velocity of the center of the pressure during the one-leg standing tasks. Ankle proprioception, including joint position sense and force sense, were tested using absolute error (AE) associated with joint position reproduction and force reproduction tasks in 4 directions, that is, plantarflexion, dorsiflexion, inversion, and eversion.

RESULTS

Athletes with CAI performed significantly worse than those without CAI in balance control tasks. In addition, CAI athletes showed significantly worse joint position sense and force sense in all 3 movement directions tested (plantarflexion, inversion, and eversion). Correlation analysis showed that the AE of the plantarflexion force sense was significantly moderately correlated with medial-lateral sway velocity in the one-leg standing with eyes open and closed conditions (r=.372-.403, P=.006-.012), and the AE of inversion force sense was significantly moderately correlated with medial-lateral sway velocity in the one-leg standing with eyes open (r=.345, P=.018) in athletes with CAI, but the joint position sense measures were not (all P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Athletes with CAI showed significantly impaired balance control performance and diminished ankle proprioception. Deficit in force sense was deemed as a moderate predictor of one-leg standing balance control deficits in athletes with dominant-side injury CAI, whereas ankle position sense may be a small predictor.

The Neuromuscular Fatigue-Induced Loss of Muscle Force Control

Neuromuscular fatigue is characterised not only by a reduction in the capacity to generate maximal muscle force, but also in the ability to control submaximal muscle forces, i.e., to generate task-relevant and precise levels of force. This decreased ability to control force is quantified according to a greater magnitude and lower complexity (temporal structure) of force fluctuations, which are indicative of decreased force steadiness and adaptability, respectively. The "loss of force control" is affected by the type of muscle contraction used in the fatiguing exercise, potentially differing between typical laboratory tests of fatigue (e.g., isometric contractions) and the contractions typical of everyday and sporting movements (e.g., dynamic concentric and eccentric contractions), and can be attenuated through the use of ergogenic aids. The loss of force control appears to relate to a fatigue-induced increase in common synaptic input to muscle, though the extent to which various mechanisms (afferent feedback, neuromodulatory pathways, cortical/reticulospinal pathways) contribute to this remains to be determined. Importantly, this fatigue-induced loss of force control could have important implications for task performance, as force control is correlated with performance in a range of tasks that are associated with activities of daily living, occupational duties, and sporting performance.

Interaction between age and fatigue on antagonist muscle coactivation during an acute post-fatigue recovery phase

This study investigated the age-related changes in antagonist muscle coactivation of the biceps femoris (BF) during an acute recovery period following a leg extensor fatiguing protocol. Twenty-three young (mean ± SD: age = 25.1 ± 3.0 years) and twenty-three old men (age = 71.5 ± 3.9 years) participated. Surface electromyography (sEMG) was recorded from the BF muscles for antagonist muscle coactivation. Testing involved participants performing leg extension isometric maximal voluntary contractions (MVCs) and isokinetic MVCs at 240°·s^-1 at baseline (Pre) and again after the fatigue protocol at 0 (Post0), 7 (Post7), 15 (Post15), and 30 (Post30) minutes post fatigue. Root mean square (RMS) values were computed from the BF sEMG and were calculated as the first 200 ms from onset for the isometric (IsomCoact200ms) and dynamic isokinetic 240°·s^-1 (DynCoact200ms) MVCs, and for the final 10° of the leg extension (DynCoact10°) on the isokinetic 240°·s^-1 MVCs. Two-way ANOVAs [age group (young vs. old) × time (Pre vs. Post0 vs. Post7 vs. Post15 vs. Post30)] showed that DynCoact200ms had an effect for time (p = 0.018), with greater antagonist coactivation in Pre than Post0 (p = 0.009) and recovering by Post7 (p = 0.011) with no group differences. DynCoact10° had no age × time interaction (p = 0.070), but had a main effect for time (p = 0.020) with the Post0 being lower than the Pre. However, for this variable the young group showed a more severe Pre to Post0 fatigue decline (-45.9%) than the old group (-6.7%) indicating this may be a more sensitive variable for capturing age-related antagonist coactivation post-fatigue responses. Leg extensor fatigue affects some BF coactivation sEMG variables more than others, and any altered post-fatigue coactivation response recovers rapidly (<7 min) from baseline levels.

Use of Surface Electromyography to Measure Muscle Fatigue in Patients in an Acute Care Hospital

BACKGROUND

Functional outcomes with early rehabilitation in the acute care setting have improved; however, an improved understanding of muscle fatigue using surface electromyography (sEMG) is warranted to better guide patient-centered exercise prescription.

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this study were to assess the safety and feasibility of collecting sEMG at the acute care bedside and to determine differences in muscle fatigue during isometric and dynamic submaximal contractions among patients in the hospital, healthy younger participants, and healthy older participants.

DESIGN

The study used an observational cohort design.

METHODS

There were 37 participants. Median frequency (Fmed) of the myoelectric signal of the quadriceps femoris muscles and time to task failure (TTTF) were measured using sEMG during an isometric and dynamic fatiguing contraction. Primary analysis compared TTTF between groups for both types of contractions. Secondary analysis compared Fmed at initiation and termination of fatiguing contraction.

RESULTS

High-quality sEMG measures were safe and feasible to collect at the acute care bedside with no adverse events. There was a statistically significant difference in TTTF between groups after isometric and dynamic contractions; hospitalized patients fatigued faster than healthy younger and healthy older participants after both contractions. With the exception of the vastus lateralis during a dynamic contraction in healthy younger and hospitalized patients, there was a statistically significant difference between Fmed at initiation and termination of contraction, indicating that subjects' muscles did truly fatigue.

LIMITATIONS

A limitation of the study was the small sample size of patients who were hospitalized without matched controls.

CONCLUSIONS

sEMG is a lab quantitative technique that was found to be safe and feasible to assess muscle fatigue in the acute care environment. The protocol yielded similar results to previously published literature for healthy younger and healthy older people. Further research is needed to better understand how to integrate sEMG findings into patient-centered exercise prescriptions.

Sex comparisons of agonist and antagonist muscle electromyographic parameters during two different submaximal isometric fatiguing tasks

To examine the task failure time of the force- and position-based submaximal elbow flexion fatiguing tasks for both sexes, twelve men and eight women visited the laboratory for two separate experimental occasions. During the experiment, they pulled against a rigid restraint for the force task and maintained a constant elbow joint angle to support an equivalent inertial load for the position task. For both fatiguing tasks (50% of the isometric strength at the elbow joint angle of 135 degree), the task failure time, along with the surface electromyographic (EMG) amplitude and mean frequency (MNF) were measured. The average failure time was longer for the force task than that for the position task (sexes combined: 39.6 ± 16.6 sec vs. 33.9 ± 14.9 sec, P = 0.033). In addition, men were overall less fatigable than women (tasks combined: 42.0 ± 14.7 sec vs. 28.7 ± 10.3 sec, P = 0.020). The multiple regression analyses showed that the task failure time in women was solely predicted by the rate of change of the triceps EMG MNF. Thus, more fatigability of women in this study was likely due to the quicker fatiguing rate of the antagonist triceps brachii muscle. Different from most previous studies that have used 90-degree elbow joint angle, the current 135-degree joint angle setup might have created a situation where greater muscle activity from the related muscles (e.g., the antagonist) were required for women than for men to stabilize the joint, thereby resulting in a shorter task failure time.

Individual difference in β-band corticomuscular coherence and its relation to force steadiness during isometric voluntary ankle dorsiflexion in healthy humans

OBJECTIVE

Magnitude of β-band coherent neural activities between the sensorimotor cortex and contracting muscle is known to vary across healthy individuals. To clarify how this variance affects actual motor function, this study examined associations between the corticomuscular coherence (CMC) and force steadiness.

METHODS

CMC was calculated between scalp electroencephalograms (EEGs) over the sensorimotor cortex and surface electromyograms (EMGs) from the tibialis anterior muscle during tonic isometric voluntary ankle dorsiflexion at 30% of maximal effort in 22 healthy individuals. We calculated the maximal peak of CMC (CMCmax), and examined its relations to some measures of force fluctuation, such as the coefficient of variation (ForceCV), the sum of the power spectral density within 1-4Hz (Forceδ-PSD), 5-14Hz (Forceα-PSD), and 15-35Hz (Forceβ-PSD) bands of force signal.

RESULTS

In all participants showing significant CMC, CMCmax was observed within the β-band. CMCmax was varied across participants (range, 0.084-0.451), and was correlated significantly and positively with ForceCV (r=0.602, p=0.003), Forceβ-PSD (r=0.637, p=0.001), Forceα-PSD (r=0.647, p=0.001), and Forceδ-PSD (r=0.518, p=0.014).

CONCLUSION

The magnitude of the CMC between EEG over the sensorimotor cortex and EMG of contracting muscle is associated with the amount of force fluctuation during tonic isometric voluntary ankle dorsiflexion in healthy humans.

SIGNIFICANCE

CMC may influence an individual's ability to stabilize their muscle force output.

Age differences in dynamic fatigability and variability of arm and leg muscles: Associations with physical function

INTRODUCTION

It is not known whether the age-related increase in fatigability of fast dynamic contractions in lower limb muscles also occurs in upper limb muscles. We compared age-related fatigability and variability of maximal-effort repeated dynamic contractions in the knee extensor and elbow flexor muscles; and determined associations between fatigability, variability of velocity between contractions and functional performance.

METHODS

35 young (16 males; 21.0±2.6years) and 32 old (18 males; 71.3±6.2years) adults performed a dynamic fatiguing task involving 90 maximal-effort, fast, concentric, isotonic contractions (1 contraction/3s) with a load equivalent to 20% maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) torque with the elbow flexor and knee extensor muscles on separate days. Old adults also performed tests of balance and walking endurance.

RESULTS

Old adults had greater fatigue-related reductions in peak velocity compared with young adults for both the elbow flexor and knee extensor muscles (P<0.05) with no sex differences (P>0.05). Old adults had greater variability of peak velocity during the knee extensor, but not during the elbow flexor fatiguing task. The age difference in fatigability was greater for the knee extensor muscles (35.9%) compared with elbow flexor muscles (9.7%, P<0.05). Less fatigability of the knee extensor muscles was associated with greater walking endurance (r=-0.34, P=0.048) and balance (r=-0.41, P=0.014) among old adults.

CONCLUSIONS

An age-related increase in fatigability of a dynamic fatiguing task was greater for the knee extensor compared with the elbow flexor muscles in males and females, and greater fatigability was associated with lesser walking endurance and balance.

Force and Position Control in Humans - The Role of Augmented Feedback

During motor behaviour, humans interact with the environment by for example manipulating objects and this is only possible because sensory feedback is constantly integrated into the central nervous system and these sensory inputs need to be weighted in order meet the task specific goals. Additional feedback presented as augmented feedback was shown to have an impact on motor control and motor learning. A number of studies investigated whether force or position feedback has an influence on motor control and neural activation. However, as in the previous studies the presentation of the force and position feedback was always identical, a recent study assessed whether not only the content but also the interpretation of the feedback has an influence on the time to fatigue of a sustained submaximal contraction and the (inhibitory) activity of the primary motor cortex using subthreshold transcranial magnetic stimulation. This paper describes one possible way to investigate the influence of the interpretation of feedback on motor behaviour by investigating the time to fatigue of submaximal sustained contractions together with the neuromuscular adaptations that can be investigated using surface EMG. Furthermore, the current protocol also describes how motor cortical (inhibitory) activity can be investigated using subthreshold TMS, a method known to act solely on the cortical level. The results show that when participants interpret the feedback as position feedback, they display a significantly shorter time to fatigue of a submaximal sustained contraction. Furthermore, subjects also displayed an increased inhibitory activity of the primary cortex when they believed to receive position feedback compared when they believed to receive force feedback. Accordingly, the results show that interpretation of feedback results in differences on a behavioural level (time to fatigue) that is also reflected in interpretation-specific differences in the amount of inhibitory M1 activity.

Greater glucose uptake heterogeneity in knee muscles of old compared to young men during isometric contractions detected by [(18)F]-FDG PET/CT

We used positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) and [¹⁸F]-FDG to test the hypothesis that glucose uptake (GU) heterogeneity in skeletal muscles as a measure of heterogeneity in muscle activity is greater in old than young men when they perform isometric contractions. Six young (26 ± 6 years) and six old (77 ± 6 years) men performed two types of submaximal isometric contractions that required either force or position control. [¹⁸F]-FDG was injected during the task and PET/CT scans were performed immediately after the task. Within-muscle heterogeneity of knee muscles was determined by calculating the coefficient of variation (CV) of GU in PET image voxels within the muscles of interest. The average GU heterogeneity (mean ± SD) for knee extensors and flexors was greater for the old (35.3 ± 3.3%) than the young (28.6 ± 2.4%) (P = 0.006). Muscle volume of the knee extensors were greater for the young compared to the old men (1016 ± 163 vs. 598 ± 70 cm³, P = 0.004). In a multiple regression model, knee extensor muscle volume was a predictor (partial r = −0.87; P = 0.001) of GU heterogeneity for old men (R² = 0.78; P < 0.001), and MVC force predicted GU heterogeneity for young men (partial r = −0.95, P < 0.001). The findings demonstrate that GU is more spatially variable for old than young men and especially so for old men who exhibit greater muscle atrophy.

Motor Variability during Sustained Contractions Increases with Cognitive Demand in Older Adults

To expose cortical involvement in age-related changes in motor performance, we compared steadiness (force fluctuations) and fatigability of submaximal isometric contractions with the ankle dorsiflexor muscles in older and young adults and with varying levels of cognitive demand imposed. Sixteen young (20.4 ± 2.1 year: 8 men, 9 women) and 17 older adults (68.8 ± 4.4 years: 9 men, 8 women) attended three sessions and performed a 40 s isometric contraction at 5% maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) force followed by an isometric contraction at 30% MVC until task failure. The cognitive demand required during the submaximal contractions in each session differed as follows: (1) high-cognitive demand session where difficult mental math was imposed (counting backward by 13 from a 4-digit number); (2) low-cognitive demand session which involved simple mental math (counting backward by 1); and (3) control session with no mental math. Anxiety was elevated during the high-cognitive demand session compared with other sessions for both age groups but more so for the older adults than young adults (p  < 0.05). Older adults had larger force fluctuations than young adults during: (1) the 5% MVC task as cognitive demand increased (p  = 0.007), and (2) the fatiguing contraction for all sessions (p  = 0.002). Time to task failure did not differ between sessions or age groups (p  > 0.05), but the variability between sessions (standard deviation of three sessions) was greater for older adults than young (2.02 ± 1.05 vs. 1.25 ± 0.51 min, p  < 0.05). Thus, variability in lower limb motor performance for low- and moderate-force isometric tasks increased with age and was exacerbated when cognitive demand was imposed, and may be related to modulation of synergist and antagonist muscles and an altered neural strategy with age originating from central sources. These data have significant implications for cognitively demanding low-force motor tasks that are relevant to functional and ergonomic in an aging workforce.

Fatigability of the dorsiflexors and associations among multiple domains of motor function in young and old adults

Declines in neuromuscular function, including measures of mobility, muscle strength, steadiness, and patterns of muscle activation, accompany advancing age and are often associated with reduced quality of life and mortality. Paradoxically, older adults are less fatigable than young adults in some tasks. The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of age on fatigability of the dorsiflexors and to evaluate the ecological validity of this test by comparing it to motor function subdomains known to decline with advancing age. The community-dwelling older adults (n=52, 75.2±6.0years) were more fatigable than young adults (n=26, 22.2±3.7years), as assessed by endurance time for supporting a submaximal load (20% of one-repetition maximum; 1-RM) with an isometric contraction of the dorsiflexor muscles (8.9±0.6min and 15.5±0.9min, p<0.001), including participants matched for 1-RM load and sex (Y: 13.3±4.0min, O: 8.5±6.1min, n=11 pairs, 6 women, p<0.05). When the older adults were separated into two groups (65-75 and 76-90years), however, only endurance time for the oldest group was less than that for the other two groups (p<0.01). All measures of motor function were significantly correlated (all p<0.05) with dorsiflexor endurance time for the older adults, and multiple regression analysis revealed that the variance in endurance time was most closely associated with age, steadiness, and knee flexor strength (R(2)=0.50, p<0.001). These findings indicate that dorsiflexor fatigability provides a valid biomarker of motor function in older adults.

Prolonged reaction time during episodes of elevated β-band corticomuscular coupling and associated oscillatory muscle activity

Oscillatory activity in the sensorimotor cortex is coherent with 15-35 Hz band (β-band) muscle activity during tonic isometric voluntary contractions. In human subjects with higher corticomuscular coherence, prominent grouped discharge associated with a significant silent period was observed in electromyographic (EMG) signals. We examined the potential effects of β-band corticomuscular coupling on new ballistic movement as assessed by reaction time (RT). First, we quantified the coherence between electroencephalographic (EEG) signals over the sensorimotor cortex and rectified EMG signals from the tibialis anterior muscle during tonic isometric voluntary dorsiflexion at 30% of maximal effort in 15 healthy subjects. Subjects were divided into 2 groups [i.e., those with significant EEG-EMG coherence (COH+, n = 8) and those with no significant coherence (COH-, n = 7)]. Next, subjects performed ballistic contractions from a preliminary state of sustained contractions in reaction to auditory signals. RT was defined as the interval between the signal and the response onset measured by force. There were no intersubject differences in RT between COH+ and COH-. However, when the trials performed by COH+ subjects were divided into 2 groups depending on whether clear grouped discharge in the β-band was observed in the EMG (GD+ or GD-) just prior to the reaction, RT was significantly longer in the GD+ than in the GD- trials. We found that the magnitude of EEG-EMG coherence just before the reaction was significantly greater in the GD+ than in the GD- trials. These results suggest that generation of a new movement is delayed when corticomuscular coupling is elevated.

Fatigability and recovery of arm muscles with advanced age for dynamic and isometric contractions

This study determined whether age-related mechanisms can increase fatigue of arm muscles during maximal velocity dynamic contractions, as it occurs in the lower limb. We compared elbow flexor fatigue of young (n=10, 20.8±2.7 years) and old men (n=16, 73.8±6.1 years) during and in recovery from a dynamic and an isometric postural fatiguing task. Each task was maintained until failure while supporting a load equivalent to 20% of maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) torque. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was used to assess supraspinal fatigue (superimposed twitch, SIT) and muscle relaxation. Time to failure was longer for the old men than for the young men for the isometric task (9.5±3.1 vs. 17.2±7.0 min, P=0.01) but similar for the dynamic task (6.3±2.4 min vs. 6.0±2.0 min, P=0.73). Initial peak rate of relaxation was slower for the old men than for the young men, and was associated with a longer time to failure for both tasks (P<0.05). Low initial power during elbow flexion was associated with the greatest difference (reduction) in time to failure between the isometric task and the dynamic task (r=-0.54, P=0.015). SIT declined after both fatigue tasks similarly with age, although the recovery of SIT was associated with MVIC recovery for the old (both sessions) but not for the young men. Biceps brachii and brachioradialis EMG activity (% MVIC) of the old men were greater than that of the young men during the dynamic fatiguing task (P<0.05), but were similar during the isometric task. Muscular mechanisms and greater relative muscle activity (EMG activity) explain the greater fatigue during the dynamic task for the old men compared with the young men in the elbow flexor muscles. Recovery of MVC torque however relies more on the recovery of supraspinal fatigue among the old men than among the young men.

Magnified visual feedback exacerbates positional variability in older adults due to altered modulation of the primary agonist muscle

The purpose of this study was to determine whether magnified visual feedback during position-holding contractions exacerbates the age-associated differences in motor output variability due to changes in the neural activation of the agonist muscle in the upper and lower limb. Twelve young (18-35 years) and ten older adults (65-85 years) were instructed to accurately match a target position at 5° of index finger abduction and ankle dorsiflexion while lifting 10 % of their 1 repetition maximum (1RM) load. Position was maintained at three different visual angles (0.1°, 1°, and 4°) that varied across trials. Each trial lasted 25 s and visual feedback of position was removed from 15 to 25 s. Positional error was quantified as the root mean square error (RMSE) of the subject's performance from the target. Positional variability was quantified as the standard deviation of the position data. The neural activation of the first dorsal interosseus and tibialis anterior was measured with surface electromyography (EMG). Older adults were less accurate compared with young adults and the RMSE decreased significantly with an increase in visual gain. As expected, and independent of limb, older adults exhibited significantly greater positional variability compared with young adults that was exacerbated with magnification of visual feedback (1° and 4°). This increase in variability at the highest magnification of visual feedback was predicted by a decrease in power from 12 to 30 Hz of the agonist EMG signal. These findings demonstrate that motor control in older adults is impaired by magnified visual feedback during positional tasks.

Distinct profiles of neuromuscular fatigue during muscle contractions below and above the critical torque in humans

Whether the transition in fatigue processes between “low-intensity” and “high-intensity” contractions occurs gradually, as the torque requirements are increased, or whether this transition occurs more suddenly at some identifiable “threshold”, is not known. We hypothesized that the critical torque (CT; the asymptote of the torque-duration relationship) would demarcate distinct profiles of central and peripheral fatigue during intermittent isometric quadriceps contractions (3-s contraction, 2-s rest). Nine healthy men performed seven experimental trials to task failure or for up to 60 min, with maximal voluntary contractions (MVCs) performed at the end of each minute. The first five trials were performed to determine CT [∼35–55% MVC, denoted severe 1 (S1) to severe 5 (S5) in ascending order], while the remaining two trials were performed 10 and 20% below the CT (denoted CT-10% and CT-20%). Dynamometer torque and the electromyogram of the right vastus lateralis were sampled continuously. Peripheral and central fatigue was determined from the fall in potentiated doublet torque and voluntary activation, respectively. Above CT, contractions progressed to task failure in ∼3–18 min, at which point the MVC did not differ from the target torque (S1 target, 88.7 ± 4.3 N·m vs. MVC, 89.3 ± 8.8 N·m, P = 0.94). The potentiated doublet fell significantly in all trials, and voluntary activation was reduced in trials S1–S3, but not trials S4 and S5. Below CT, contractions could be sustained for 60 min on 17 of 18 occasions. Both central and peripheral fatigue developed, but there was a substantial reserve in MVC torque at the end of the task. The rate of global and peripheral fatigue development was four to five times greater during S1 than during CT-10% (change in MVC/change in time S1 vs. CT-10%: −7.2 ± 1.4 vs. −1.5 ± 0.4 N·m·min−1). These results demonstrate that CT represents a critical threshold for neuromuscular fatigue development.

Age-related differences in muscle fatigue vary by contraction type: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

During senescence, despite the loss of strength (force-generating capability) associated with sarcopenia, muscle endurance may improve for isometric contractions.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this study was to perform a systematic meta-analysis of young versus older adults, considering likely moderators (ie, contraction type, joint, sex, activity level, and task intensity).

DATA SOURCES

A 2-stage systematic review identified potential studies from PubMed, CINAHL, PEDro, EBSCOhost: ERIC, EBSCOhost: Sportdiscus, and The Cochrane Library.

STUDY SELECTION

Studies reporting fatigue tasks (voluntary activation) performed at a relative intensity in both young (18-45 years of age) and old (≥ 55 years of age) adults who were healthy were considered.

DATA EXTRACTION

Sample size, mean and variance outcome data (ie, fatigue index or endurance time), joint, contraction type, task intensity (percentage of maximum), sex, and activity levels were extracted.

DATA SYNTHESIS

Effect sizes were (1) computed for all data points; (2) subgrouped by contraction type, sex, joint or muscle group, intensity, or activity level; and (3) further subgrouped between contraction type and the remaining moderators. Out of 3,457 potential studies, 46 publications (with 78 distinct effect size data points) met all inclusion criteria.

LIMITATIONS

A lack of available data limited subgroup analyses (ie, sex, intensity, joint), as did a disproportionate spread of data (most intensities ≥ 50% of maximum voluntary contraction).

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, older adults were able to sustain relative-intensity tasks significantly longer or with less force decay than younger adults (effect size=0.49). However, this age-related difference was present only for sustained and intermittent isometric contractions, whereas this age-related advantage was lost for dynamic tasks. When controlling for contraction type, the additional modifiers played minor roles. Identifying muscle endurance capabilities in the older adult may provide an avenue to improve functional capabilities, despite a clearly established decrement in peak torque.

Between-subject variance in the magnitude of corticomuscular coherence during tonic isometric contraction of the tibialis anterior muscle in healthy young adults

Oscillatory activity of the sensorimotor cortex has been reported to show coherence with muscle activity in the 15- to 35-Hz frequency band (β-band) during weak to moderate intensity of isometric contraction. The present study examined the variance of the magnitude of the corticomuscular coherence across a large number of subjects. We quantified the coherence between EEG over the sensorimotor cortex and rectified electromyogram (EMG) from the tibialis anterior muscle during tonic isometric contraction at 30% of maximal effort in 100 healthy young individuals. We estimated the maximal peak of EEG-EMG coherence (Cohmax) and the ratio of the sum of the autopower spectral density function within the β-band to that of all frequency ranges for both EEG (EEGβ-PSD) and EMG (EMGβ-PSD) signals. The frequency histogram of Cohmax across all subjects showed a broad bell-shaped continuous distribution (range, 0.048-0.816). When the coherence was thresholded at the estimated significance level of P < 0.05 (0.114), 46 out of 100 subjects showed significant EEG-EMG coherence. Cohmax occurred within the β-band in the majority of subjects who showed significant EEG-EMG coherence (n = 43). Furthermore, Cohmax showed significant positive correlations with both EEGβ-PSD (r = 0.575, P < 0.001) and EMGβ-PSD (r = 0.606, P < 0.001). These data suggest that even during simple tonic isometric contraction, the strength of oscillatory coupling between the sensorimotor cortex and spinal motoneurons varies among individuals and is a contributory factor determining muscle activation patterns such as the degree of grouped discharge in muscle activity within the β-band for each subject.