Aging, Parkinson's Disease (PD)
Conditions
Keywords
Old, Parkinson's disease, muscle force, force steadiness, balance, gait performance
Brief summary
Both aging and Parkinson's disease (PD) negatively affect postural control and increase the risk of falls, with frontal plane balance being particularly challenging for these populations. While previous studies have mainly focused on sagittal plane balance, the contribution of hip abductor muscles remains unclear, especially regarding their force production and control abilities. Therefore, this study aims to investigate hip abductor muscle force production and force control, and to examine whether these factors are associated with postural control, gait, and balance performance in individuals across different ages and those with PD.
Detailed description
Both aging and Parkinson's disease (PD) negatively affect postural control and increase the risk of falls, with frontal plane balance being particularly challenging for these populations. Previous studies have mainly focused on sagittal plane balance and have identified the important roles of ankle plantar flexors and knee extensors; however, the contribution of hip abductor muscles-key muscles for frontal plane stability-remains unclear, particularly in terms of their force production and control abilities. Therefore, this study aims to investigate hip abductor muscle force production and force control, and to examine whether these factors are associated with postural control, gait, and balance performance in individuals across different ages and those with PD. Healthy young, middle-aged, and older adults will be recruited from the community, and individuals with PD will be recruited from the Department of Neurology. Healthy participants must be in good health, able to walk independently, demonstrate normal cognitive function, and provide informed consent, while those with neurological, cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, or other conditions affecting motor performance will be excluded. For individuals with PD, inclusion criteria will be a clinical diagnosis of idiopathic PD, Hoehn and Yahr stages 1 to 3, stable anti-PD medication use, and the ability to follow instructions and walk at least 10 m. Exclusion criteria will include psychiatric, immune, integumentary, or musculoskeletal disorders, neurological conditions other than PD, lower extremity pain, uncontrolled cardiovascular disease, or inability to provide informed consent. All participants will undergo a one-time assessment, including maximal voluntary isometric contraction, force steadiness, postural control, and gait performance. Surface electromyography will be used to assess neuromuscular function, postural control will be evaluated using a force plate under multiple standing conditions, and gait parameters will be measured at both comfortable and fast walking speeds. Statistical analyses will be conducted using ANOVA to examine group differences.
Interventions
OTHERAge
We compare the young, middle-aged, and old groups
OTHERParkinson's disease (PD)
We compare the healthy group and PD group.
Sponsors
Chang Gung Memorial Hospital
Chang Gung University
Study design
Observational model
COHORT
Time perspective
CROSS_SECTIONAL
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
20 Years to 85 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
Healthy people Inclusion Criteria: * 20 to 39 years (young), 40 to 59 years (young), and 60-85 years (old) * generally in good health * able to walk 10 m independently * able to follow all instructions
Exclusion criteria
* neurologic, psychiatric, immune, integumentary, and musculoskeletal diseases or disorders which might influence this study * any pain over the lower extremities * uncontrolled cardiovascular diseases * unable to provide informed consent. PD Inclusion Criteria: * clinical diagnosis of idiopathic PD * Hoehn and Yahr stages 1 to 3 * stable anti-PD medications * able to walk 10 m independently * able to follow all instructions
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Maximal force | Baseline | The maximal force of lower extremity muscles |
| Rate of torque development | Baseline | The ability to rapidly generate muscle force |
| Force steadiness | Baseline | The ability to maintain a constant force output during a submaximal contraction |
| Walking speed | Baseline | The time taken by participants to walk a standardized distance |
| Step Length | Baseline | The linear distance between the two ankles, typically expressed in centimeter(cm). |
| Cadence | Baseline | The number of steps taken per minute (SPM) |
| Single Support Time | Baseline | The duration within the gait cycle when only one foot is in contact with the ground, typically measured in seconds or as a percentage of the total gait cycle. |
| Double Support Time | Baseline | The portion of the gait cycle where both feet are in contact with the ground, indicating the transition phase between steps, expressed as a percentage of the gait cycle or in seconds. |
| Swing Time | Baseline | The portion of the gait cycle where the foot is not in contact with the ground, moving forward to the next step. It is usually expressed as a percentage of the total gait cycle or in seconds. |
| Center of Pressure (COP) Velocity in Balance Tasks | Baseline | The speed at which the COP moves, calculated over the duration of the balance task. Higher velocities may reflect more dynamic balance adjustments or instability. Unit：millimeter per second(mm/s) |
| Center of Pressure (COP) Area in Balance Tasks | Baseline | The area covered by the COP trajectory during the balance task, providing an estimate of the sway envelope. A larger area might indicate poorer balance control. Unit：square millimeter(mm\^2) |
| Timed Up-and-Go Test | Baseline | Tthe time an individual takes to stand up from a chair, walk 3 meters, turn around, walk back, and sit down. |
| Four Square Step Test | Baseline | Participants will be required to perform four square step test by changing directions while stepping forward, sideway, and backward over a low obstacle as fast as possible. |
Countries
Taiwan
Contacts
CONTACTChu-Ling Yen
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORChu-Ling Yen
Chang Gung University
Outcome results
None listed