Age-Related Differences in the Relationships Between Lower-Limb Joint Proprioception and Postural Balance

2018 ◽  
Vol 61 (5) ◽  
pp. 702-711 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xingyu Chen ◽  
Xingda Qu
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Lower Limb ◽  
Postural Balance ◽  
Center Of Pressure ◽  
Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Ankle Proprioception ◽  
Anterior Posterior

Objective: In the present study we aimed to investigate the relationships between lower-limb joint proprioception and postural balance. Age-related differences in such relationships were also identified. Background: Impaired postural balance is reportedly one of the most common risk factors for fall accidents. Interventions have been proposed to improve postural balance by enhancing proprioceptive feedback. However, there is still no consensus on the optimal design for these interventions; therefore, there is a need to better reveal the contributions of lower-limb joint proprioception to postural balance. Method: Twenty-eight young and 28 older adults participated. Lower-limb joint proprioception was assessed by joint position sense errors measured at the ankle, knee, and hip of the dominant side, respectively. Postural balance was assessed by using center-of-pressure measures during bilateral static stance. Results: Ankle joint position sense error was positively correlated with root mean squared distance of the center of pressure in the anterior-posterior and medial-lateral directions in both young and older adults. Different from young adults, hip joint position sense error was positively correlated with root mean squared distance of the center of pressure in the anterior-posterior and medial-lateral directions in older adults only. Conclusion: Declined ankle and hip proprioception could be risk factors for falls in older adults. Age-related differences in the effects of hip proprioception suggests that hip proprioception is more important for maintaining balance in older adults. Ankle proprioception contributes the most to balance maintenance. Thus, ankle proprioception enhancement exercises should be considered in fall prevention interventions.

scholarly journals Chen-Style Tai Chi for Individuals (Aged 50 Years Old or Above) with Chronic Non-Specific Low Back Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 517 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Liu ◽  
Albert Yeung ◽  
Tao Xiao ◽  
Xiaopei Tian ◽  
Zhaowei Kong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lower Limb ◽  
Tai Chi ◽  
Functional Disability ◽  
Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position Sense ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Joint Position ◽  
Low Back ◽  
Core Stabilization ◽  
Limb Proprioception

Tai Chi (TC) can be considered safe and effective intervention to improve pain and pain-related functional disability. However, it is unclear that whether aging individuals with Chronic Non-Specific Low Back Pain (CNS-LBP) can achieve positive results. This study, therefore, attempted to explore the effects of TC on pain and functional disability in CNS-LBP patients aged 50 years old or above. Forty-three individuals (aged 50 years old or above) with CNS-LBP were randomly assigned into three groups: Chen-Style TC group (n = 15), Core Stabilization training (CST) group (n = 15), and control group (n = 13). Participants in the TC group participated in Chen-style TC training program (three 60-min sessions per week for 12 weeks), individuals in CST group received 12-week Core Stabilization exercise on the Swiss ball, whereas individuals in the control group maintained their unaltered lifestyle. Pain intensity as primary outcome was measured using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), A BiodexSystem 3 isokinetic dynamometer was used to measure knee and ankle joint position sense (JPS) as secondary outcomes at baseline and after the 12-week intervention. TC and CST have significant effects in VAS for CNS-LBP patients (p< 0.01, TC group OR CST group versus control group in mean of the post-minus-pre assessment). However, the feature of joint position sense (JPS) of ankle inversion, ankle eversion and knee flexion did not occur, it showed no significant effects with TC and CST. TC was found to reduce pain, but not improve lower limb proprioception in patients with CNS-LBP. Future research with larger sample sizes will be needed to achieve more definitive findings on the effects of TC on both pain and lower limb proprioception in this population.

scholarly journals Military Exercises, Knee and Ankle Joint Position Sense, and Injury in Male Conscripts: A Pilot Study

2013 ◽  
Vol 48 (6) ◽  
pp. 790-796 ◽  
Author(s):  
Farshid Mohammadi ◽  
Kamran Azma ◽  
Iman Naseh ◽  
Reza Emadifard ◽  
Yasaman Etemadi
Keyword(s):  
Lower Extremity ◽  
Lower Limb ◽  
Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position ◽  
Lower Limb Injuries ◽  
Lower Extremity Injuries ◽  
Military Exercises ◽  
Limb Injuries ◽  
Extremity Injuries

Context: The high incidence of lower limb injuries associated with physical exercises in military conscripts suggests that fatigue may be a risk factor for injuries. Researchers have hypothesized that lower limb injuries may be related to altered ankle and knee joint position sense (JPS) due to fatigue. Objective: To evaluate if military exercises could alter JPS and to examine the possible relation of JPS to future lower extremity injuries in military service. Design: Cohort study. Setting: Laboratory. Patients or Other Participants: A total of 50 male conscripts (age = 21.4 ± 2.3 years, height = 174.5 ± 6.4 cm, mass = 73.1 ± 6.3 kg) from a unique military base were recruited randomly. Main Outcome Measure(s): Participants performed 8 weeks of physical activities at the beginning of a military course. In the first part of the study, we instructed participants to recognize predetermined positions before and after military exercises so we could examine the effects of military exercise on JPS. The averages of the absolute error and the variable error of 3 trials were recorded. We collected data on the frequency of lower extremity injuries over 8 weeks. Next, the participants were divided into 2 groups: injured and uninjured. Separate 2 × 2 × 2 (group-by-time-by-joint) mixed-model analyses of variance were used to determine main effects and interactions of these factors for each JPS measure. In the second part of the study, we examined whether the effects of fatigue on JPS were related to the development of injury during an 8-week training program. We calculated Hedges effect sizes for JPS changes postexercise in each group and compared change scores between groups. Results: We found group-by-time interactions for all JPS variables (F range = 2.86–4.05, P &lt; .01). All participants showed increases in JPS errors postexercise (P &lt; .01), but the injured group had greater changes for all the variables (P &lt; .01). Conclusions: Military conscripts who sustained lower extremity injuries during an 8-week military exercise program had greater loss of JPS acuity than conscripts who did not sustain injuries. The changes in JPS found after 1 bout of exercise may have predictive ability for future musculoskeletal injuries.

Age-related Differences In Knee Joint Position Sense

2008 ◽  
Vol 40 (Supplement) ◽  
pp. S219
Author(s):  
Fernando Ribeiro ◽  
José Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Knee Joint ◽  
Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position ◽  
Age Related

scholarly journals The sensorimotor effects of a lower limb proprioception training intervention in individuals with a spinal cord injury

2019 ◽  
Vol 122 (6) ◽  
pp. 2364-2371 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taha Qaiser ◽  
Gevorg Eginyan ◽  
Franco Chan ◽  
Tania Lam
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Spinal Cord Injury ◽  
Lower Limb ◽  
Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position ◽  
End Point ◽  
Cord Injury ◽  
Training Protocol ◽  
Precision Stepping

Proprioception is critical for movement control. After a spinal cord injury (SCI), individuals not only experience paralysis but may also experience proprioceptive deficits, further confounding motor recovery. The objective of this study was to test the effects of a robotic-based proprioception training protocol on lower limb proprioceptive sense in people with incomplete SCI. A secondary objective was to assess whether the effects of training transferred to a precision stepping task in people with motor-incomplete SCI. Participants with chronic incomplete SCI and able-bodied controls underwent a 2-day proprioceptive training protocol using the Lokomat robotic exoskeleton. The training involved positioning the test leg to various positions and participants were asked to report whether they felt their heel position (end-point position) was higher or lower compared with a reference position. Feedback was provided after each trial to help participants learn strategies that could help them discern different positions of their foot. Changes in end-point position as well as knee joint position sense were assessed pre- and posttraining. We also assessed the effects of proprioception training on the performance of a precision stepping task in people with motor-incomplete SCI. Following training, there were significant improvements in end-point and knee joint position sense in both groups. The magnitude of improvement was related to pretraining (baseline) proprioceptive sense, indicating that those who initially had better lower limb position sense showed greater changes. Participants also showed improvements in performance of a precision stepping task. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We show that it is possible to alter proprioceptive sense in people with incomplete SCI using a passive proprioception training protocol combined with feedback. Improvements in proprioceptive sense transferred from end-point to joint position sense and also to an untrained precision stepping task.

LOWER LIMB JOINT POSITION SENSE IN PATIENTS WITH TYPE II DIABETES MELLITUS

2009 ◽  
Vol 21 (04) ◽  
pp. 271-278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei-Chun Hsu ◽  
Tung-Wu Lu ◽  
Ming-Wei Liu
Keyword(s):  
Diabetes Mellitus ◽  
Early Detection ◽  
Lower Limb ◽  
Weight Bearing ◽  
Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position Sense ◽  
Joint Involvement ◽  
Diabetic Patients ◽  
Joint Position ◽  
Type Ii

Diabetes mellitus (DM), of which type II has been described as an international epidemic, is a major cause of death. Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (PN) is a condition secondary to hyperglycemia, where progressive loss of peripheral nerve function, including sensory and motor functions, occurs over time. Early detection of PN-related impairments may be helpful for the management of patients with DM. Among the methods for the evaluation of these impairments, only that for joint position sense (JPS) requires both motor and sensory involvement. The purpose of the current study was to compare the JPS of the lower limb joints in patients with no or mild diabetic PN to those of normal controls both during weight-bearing (WB) and non-weight-bearing (NWB) conditions using 3D motion analysis methods. The results supported the hypothesis that in well controlled diabetic patients with no or mild PN, JPS deficits can be found only at the ankle joint during WB conditions, resulting in overestimation of dorsiflexion angles. This suggests that at the very early stage of development of diabetic PN, distal joint involvement precedes that of proximal joints. Early detection of these changes, through the assessment of the JPS for all the lower limb joints under both NWB and WB conditions, will be helpful for the development of clinical preventive and treatment programs for patients with DM, even if their glucose level are well controlled. Gait and balance training in these patients should emphasize proprioception training exercises during WB conditions.

scholarly journals Acute effects of wearing compression knee-length socks on ankle joint position sense in community-dwelling older adults

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. e0245979
Author(s):  
Mei Teng Woo ◽  
Keith Davids ◽  
Jia Yi Chow ◽  
Timo Jaakkola
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Elderly People ◽  
Ankle Joint ◽  
Plantar Flexion ◽  
Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position Sense ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Joint Position ◽  
Acute Effects ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

Functional proprioceptive information is required to allow an individual to interact with the environment effectively for everyday activities such as locomotion and object manipulation. Specifically, research suggests that application of compression garments could improve proprioceptive regulation of action by enhancing sensorimotor system noise in individuals of different ages and capacities. However, limited research has been conducted with samples of elderly people thus far. This study aimed to examine acute effects of wearing knee-length socks (KLS) of various compression levels on ankle joint position sense in community-dwelling, older adults. A total of 26 participants (12 male and 14 female), aged between 65 and 84 years, were randomly recruited from local senior activity centres in Singapore. A repeated-measures design was used to determine effects on joint position awareness of three different treatments–wearing clinical compression socks (20–30 mmHg); wearing non-clinical compression socks (< 20 mmHg); wearing normal socks, and one control condition (barefoot). Participants were required to use the dominant foot to indicate 8 levels of steepness (2.5°, 5°, 7.5°, 10°, 12.5°, 15°, 17.5°, and 20°), while standing on a modified slope box, in a plantar flexion position. Findings showed that wearing clinical compression KLS significantly reduced the mean absolute errors compared to the barefoot condition. However, there were no significant differences observed between other KLS and barefoot conditions. Among the KLS of various compression levels, results suggested that only wearing clinical compression KLS (20–30 mmHg) improved the precision of estimation of ankle joint plantar flexion movement, by reducing absolute performance errors in elderly people. It is concluded that wearing clinical compression KLS could potentially provide an affordable strategy to ameliorate negative effects of ageing on the proprioception system to enhance balance and postural control in community-dwelling individuals.

scholarly journals Influence of cryotherapy on balance and joint position sense in healthy subjects: randomized clinical trial.

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 276
Author(s):  
Caio Alano de Almeida Lins ◽  
Liane Brito Macedo ◽  
Renata Augusta Gomes Silveira ◽  
Daniel Tezoni Borges ◽  
Jamilson Simões Brasileiro
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Trial ◽  
Lower Limb ◽  
Soft Tissues ◽  
Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position Sense ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Joint Position ◽  
Kinetic Chain ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Experimental Group

Background: Cryotherapy has been widely used in clinical practice, particularly for the treatment of acute injuries to soft tissues and various joints. However, since decrease in temperature can results in reduced nerve conduction velocity and proprioception, it can therefore be assumed that cryotherapy, applied before exercise, can result in a greater predisposition of the joints to lesion. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of cryotherapy on balance and knee joint position sense (JPS). Methods: We conducted a randomized single-blinded clinical trial, with thirty volunteers of both genders (age: 23.3 ± 2.5 years; BMI: 22.2 ± 2.1 Kg/m2), who were randomly distributed into two groups with 15 subjects in each: control group - 20 minutes at rest; and experimental group - application of cryotherapy on the knee of the dominant lower limb, for 20 minutes. All subjects were submitted to the assessment of the balance, by means of computerized baropodometry and the JPS of the knee of the dominant lower limb (DLL) using an electrogoniometer, both open kinetic chain (OKC) and closed kinetic chain (CKC), before and after the interventions. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 20.0 software.  Kolmogorov-Smirnov test was used to check the data normality and two-way ANOVA to verify intra and inter-group differences. The study was approved by the local Research and Ethics Committee (Approval no.  099/10) Results: There was a difference on the JPS assessed in OKC in the experimental group (p= 0.03). There was no alteration in the balance and the JPS with CKC, in none of the groups tested (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Cryotherapy when applied on knee did not affect balance or the JPS with CKC of the knee, although alteration was observed in OKC. We therefore conclude that application of cryotherapy before exercises do not posses increased risk of myoarticular injuries, since the most of these activities is performed in CKC.

scholarly journals Ankle Proprioception in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

2021 ◽  
Vol 111 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ozkan Maras ◽  
Deniz Dulgeroglu ◽  
Aytul Cakci
Keyword(s):  
Diabetes Mellitus ◽  
Type 2 Diabetes ◽  
Educational Level ◽  
Disease Duration ◽  
Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position Sense ◽  
Joint Position ◽  
Foot Complications ◽  
Ankle Proprioception

Background Ankle position sense may be reduced before the appearance of the clinical manifestation of diabetic peripheral neuropathy. This is known to impair gait and cause falls and foot ulcers. Early detection of impaired ankle proprioception is important because it allows physicians to prescribe an exercise program to patients to prevent foot complications. Methods Forty-six patients diagnosed as having type 2 diabetes mellitus and 22 control patients were included in the study. Presence of neuropathy was assessed using the Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument (MNSI). Level of foot care awareness was determined using the Nottingham Assessment of Functional Footcare (NAFF). Joint position sense was measured using a dynamometer. Results Mean absolute angular error (MAAE) values were significantly higher in the neuropathy group compared with the control group (P &lt; .05). Right plantarflexion MAAE values were significantly lower in the group without neuropathy compared with the group with neuropathy (P &lt; .05). No correlation was found between MAAE values (indicating joint position sense) and age, educational level, disease duration, glycemic control, NAFF score, and MNSI history and examination scores in the groups with and without neuropathy (P &gt; .05). Educational level and disease duration were found to be correlated with NAFF scores. Conclusions Increased MNSI history scores and increased deficits in ankle proprioception demonstrate that diabetic foot complications associated with reduced joint position sense may be seen at an increased rate in symptomatic patients.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document