Determinants of age-related decline in walking speed in older women

PeerJ

article

Valéria Feijó Martins¹  Luigi Tesio²  Anna Simone²  Andréa Kruger Gonçalves¹  Leonardo A. Peyré-Tartaruga¹ 

[1] LaBiodin Biodynamics Laboratory, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul;Department of Neurorehabilitation Sciences, IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano;Department of Biomedical Sciences for Health, University of Milan

关键词: Locomotion;    Aging;    Postural balance;    Locomotor rehabilitation index;    Walk ratio;   

DOI  :  10.7717/peerj.14728

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Inra

【 摘 要 】

Background Walking speed is reduced with aging. However, it is not certain whether the reduced walking speed is associated with physical and coordination fitness. This study explores the physical and coordination determinants of the walking speed decline in older women. Methods One-hundred-eighty-seven active older women (72.2 ± 6.8 years) were asked to perform a 10-m walk test (self-selected and maximal walking speed) and a battery of the Senior fitness test: lower body strength, lower body flexibility, agility/dynamic balance, and aerobic endurance. Two parameters characterized the walking performance: closeness to the modeled speed minimizing the energetic cost per unit distance (locomotor rehabilitation index, LRI), and the ratio of step length to step cadence (walk ratio, WR). For dependent variables (self-selected and maximal walking speeds), a recursive partitioning algorithm (classification and regression tree) was adopted, highlighting interactions across all the independent variables. Results Participants were aged from 60 to 88 years, and their self-selected and maximal speeds declined by 22% and 26% (p < 0.05), respectively. Similarly, all physical fitness variables worsened with aging (muscle strength: 33%; flexibility: 0 to −8 cm; balance: 22%; aerobic endurance: 12%; all p < 0.050). The predictors of maximal walking speed were only WR and balance. No meaningful predictions could be made using LRI and WR as dependent variables. Discussion The results suggest that at self-selected speed, the decrease in speed itself is sufficient to compensate for the age-related decline in the motor functions tested; by contrast, lowering the WR is required at maximal speed, presumably to prevent imbalance. Therefore, any excessive lowering of LRI and WR indicates loss of homeostasis of walking mechanics and invites diagnostic investigation.

【 授权许可】

CC BY