Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences Large Type Edition
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
 QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]
Author:
Keyword(s):
Year:  Vol:  Page: 


This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Cited by other online articles
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Hortobágyi, T.
Right arrow Articles by DeVita, P.
Right arrow Articles citing this Article
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Hortobágyi, T.
Right arrow Articles by DeVita, P.
The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences 58:M453-M460 (2003)
© 2003 The Gerontological Society of America

Old Adults Perform Activities of Daily Living Near Their Maximal Capabilities

Tibor Hortobágyi, Chris Mizelle, Stacey Beam and Paul DeVita

Biomechanics Laboratory, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina.

Background.Old adults' ability to execute activities of daily living (ADLs) declines with age. One possible reason for this decline is that the execution of customary motor tasks requires a substantially greater effort in old compared with young adults relative to their available maximal capacity.

Methods.We tested the hypothesis that the relative effort (i.e., the percentage of joint moment relative to maximal joint moment) to execute ADLs is higher in old adults compared with young adults. Healthy young adults (n = 13; mean age, 22 years) and old adults (n = 14; mean age, 74 years) ascended and descended stairs and rose from a chair and performed maximal-effort isometric supine leg press. Using inverse dynamics analysis, we determined knee joint moments in ADLs and computed relative effort.

Results.Compared with young adults, old adults had 60% lower maximal leg press moments, 53% slower knee angular velocity at peak torque, and 27% lower knee joint moments in the ADLs (all p <.05). Relative effort in ascent was 54% (SD ± 16%) and 78% (±20%) in young and old adults, respectively; in descent, it was 42% (±20%) and 88% (±43%); and in chair rise, it was 42% (±19%) and 80% (±34%) (all p <.05). The relative electromyographic activity of the vastus lateralis and the coactivity of the biceps femoris associated with this relative effort were, respectively, 2- and 1.6-fold greater in old compared with young adults in the 3 ADLs (p <.05).

Conclusions.For healthy old adults, the difficulty that arises while performing ADLs may be due more to working at a higher level of effort relative to their maximum capability than to the absolute functional demands imposed by the task.




This article has been cited by other articles: (Search Google Scholar for Other Citing Articles)


Home page
J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med SciHome page
M. L. Madigan and E. M. Lloyd
Age-Related Differences in Peak Joint Torques During the Support Phase of Single-Step Recovery From a Forward Fall
J. Gerontol. A Biol. Sci. Med. Sci., June 1, 2005; 60(7): 910 - 914.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]




HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
All GSA journals The Gerontologist
Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences
Copyright © 2003 by The Gerontological Society of America.