Corticospinal Control of Human Locomotion as a New Determinant of Age-Related Sarcopenia: An Exploratory Study

Journal of Clinical Medicine

Katrien De Bock¹  Federico Gennaro¹  Eling D. de Bruin¹  Alain Kaelin-Lang²  Paolo Maino³ 

[1] Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Institute of Human Movement Sciences and Sport, ETH Zurich, 8093 Zurich, Switzerland;Neurocenter of Southern Switzerland, Regional Hospital of Lugano, 6900 Lugano, Switzerland;Pain Management Center, Neurocenter of Southern Switzerland, Regional Hospital of Lugano, 6962 Lugano, Switzerland;

关键词: sarcopenia;    dynapenia;    corticomuscular coherence;    corticospinal control;    connectivity;    eeg;    emg;    gait;    walking;    locomotion;   

DOI  :  10.3390/jcm9030720

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Sarcopenia is a muscle disease listed within the ICD-10 classification. Several operational definitions have been created for sarcopenia screening; however, an international consensus is lacking. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have recently recognized that sarcopenia detection requires improved diagnosis and screening measures. Mounting evidence hints towards changes in the corticospinal communication system where corticomuscular coherence (CMC) reflects an effective mechanism of corticospinal interaction. CMC can be assessed during locomotion by means of simultaneously measuring Electroencephalography (EEG) and Electromyography (EMG). The aim of this study was to perform sarcopenia screening in community-dwelling older adults and explore the possibility of using CMC assessed during gait to discriminate between sarcopenic and non-sarcopenic older adults. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves showed high sensitivity, precision and accuracy of CMC assessed from EEG Cz sensor and EMG sensors located over Musculus Vastus Medialis [Cz-VM; AUC (95.0%CI): 0.98 (0.92−1.04), sensitivity: 1.00, 1-specificity: 0.89, p < 0.001] and with Musculus Biceps Femoris [Cz-BF; AUC (95.0%CI): 0.86 (0.68−1.03), sensitivity: 1.00, 1-specificity: 0.70, p < 0.001]. These muscles showed significant differences with large magnitude of effect between sarcopenic and non-sarcopenic older adults [Hedge’s g (95.0%CI): 2.2 (1.3−3.1), p = 0.005 and Hedge’s g (95.0%CI): 1.5 (0.7−2.2), p = 0.010; respectively]. The novelty of this exploratory investigation is the hint toward a novel possible determinant of age-related sarcopenia, derived from corticospinal control of locomotion and shown by the observed large differences in CMC when sarcopenic and non-sarcopenic older adults are compared. This, in turn, might represent in future a potential treatment target to counteract sarcopenia as well as a parameter to monitor the progression of the disease and/or the potential recovery following other treatment interventions.

【 授权许可】

Unknown