Age-related changes in postural control in older women: transitional tasks in step initiation

• Published in: BMC geriatrics Vol. 21; no. 1; p. 17
• Main Authors: Michalska, Justyna, Kamieniarz, Anna, Sobota, Grzegorz, Stania, Magdalena, Juras, Grzegorz, Słomka, Kajetan J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 06.01.2021; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Age; Aged; Aged women; Aging; Balance; Cognition; crossing obstacle; Diagnosis; Female; Geriatrics; Health aspects; Humans; Locomotion; Movement disorders; Older people; Physiological aspects; Postural Balance; Posture; posturography; Risk factors; stair negotiation; Standard deviation; Standing Position; step initiation; Structure-function relationships; Womens health; Poland; United States > US; crossing obstacle; posturography; stair negotiation; step initiation
• ISSN: 1471-2318; 1471-2318
• DOI: 10.1186/s12877-020-01985-y

Aging, being a natural process, involves many functional and structural changes within the body. Identifying the age-related postural changes will provide insight into the role of aging on postural control during locomotion. The aim of this study was to identify age-related postural changes during a transitional task under different conditions. Sixty healthy females divided into three age groups: A (50-60 y/o), B (60-70 y/o), and C (70-80 y/o). The transitional task was measured by two force platforms. The procedure consisted of three phases: quiet standing, transfer onto a second platform, and quiet standing on the second platform. Four different conditions were applied: unperturbed transfer, obstacle crossing, step-up, and step-down. Double-support time, transit time, and stability time before and after the step task were analyzed. The transit time was longer by 30% for subjects over 70 y/o. The double-support time was longer by 11% among adults 60-70 y/o, while in people over 70 y/o it was longer by almost 50% compared to the 50-60 y/o subjects. The stability time before the transitional task was longer by 17% among adults over 60 y/o compared to middle-age subjects. The stability times before and after the transitional task were longer for adults in the 50-60 y/o category. The proposed procedure is adequate for assessing age-related changes in postural control while undergoing a transitional task. An analysis of the double-support time and stability time before and after the step task enabled the detection of early signs of balance changes in middle-age adults. Independent of age, the transitional task parameters changed with the increasing difficulty of the tasks.