scholarly journals Establishing Reference Values for Isometric Knee Extension and Flexion Strength

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nejc Šarabon ◽  
Žiga Kozinc ◽  
Mihael Perman

Single-joint isometric and isokinetic knee strength assessment plays an important role in strength and conditioning, physical therapy, and rehabilitation. The literature, however, lacks absolute reference values. We systematically reviewed the available studies that assessed isometric knee strength. Two scientific databases (PubMed and PEDro) were searched for the papers that are published from the inception of the field to the end of 2019. We included studies that involved participants of both genders and different age groups, regardless of the study design, that involved isometric knee extension and/or flexion measurement. The extracted data were converted to body-mass-normalized values. Moreover, the data were grouped according to the knee angle condition (extended, mid-range, and flexed). A meta-analysis was performed on 13,893 participants from 411 studies. In adult healthy males, the pooled 95% confidence intervals (CI) for knee extension were 1.34–2.23Nm/kg for extended knee angle, 2.92–3.45Nm/kg for mid-range knee angle, and 2.50–3.06Nm/kg for flexed knee angle, while the CIs for flexion were 0.85–1.20, 1.15–1.62, and 0.96–1.54Nm/kg, respectively. Adult females consistently showed lower strength than adult male subgroups (e.g., the CIs for knee extension were 1.01–1.50, 2.08–2.74, and 2.04–2.71Nm/kg for extended, mid-range, and flexed knee angle condition). Older adults consistently showed lower values than adults (e.g., pooled CIs for mid-range knee angle were 1.74–2.16Nm/kg (male) and 1.40–1.64Nm/kg (female) for extension, and 0.69–0.89Nm/kg (male) and 0.46–0.81Nm/kg (female) for flexion). Reliable normative for athletes could not be calculated due to limited number of studies for individual sports.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gareth York ◽  
Hugh Osborne ◽  
Piyanee Sriya ◽  
Sarah Astill ◽  
Marc de Kamps ◽  
...  

AbstractProprioceptive feedback and its role in control of isometric tasks is often overlooked. In this study recordings were made from upper leg muscles during an isometric knee extension task. Internal knee angle was fixed and subjects were asked to voluntarily activate their rectus femoris muscle. Muscle synergy analysis of these recordings identified canonical temporal patterns in the data. These synergies were found to encode two separate features: one concerning the coordinated contraction of the recorded muscles and the other indicating agonistic/antagonistic interactions between these muscles. The second synergy changed with internal knee angle reflecting the influence of afferent activity. This is in contrast to previous studies of dynamic task experiments which have indicated that proprioception has a negligible effect on synergy expression. Using the MIIND neural simulation platform, we developed a spinal population model with an adjustable input representing proprioceptive feedback. The model is based on existing spinal population circuits used for dynamic tasks. When the same synergy analysis was performed on the output from the model, qualitatively similar muscle synergy patterns were observed. These results suggest proprioceptive feedback is integrated in the spinal cord to control isometric tasks via muscle synergies.Significance statementSensory feedback from muscles is a significant factor in normal motor control. It is often assumed that instantaneous muscle stretch does not influence experiments where limbs are held in a fixed position. Here, we identified patterns of muscle activity during such tasks showing that this assumption should be revisited. We also developed a computational model to propose a possible mechanism, based on a network of populations of neurons, that could explain this phenomenon. The model is based on well established neural circuits in the spinal cord and fits closely other models used to simulate more dynamic tasks like locomotion in vertebrates.Conflict of interest statementThe authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.


2017 ◽  
pp. 1-3
Author(s):  
R.W. Bohannon

Normative reference values for knee extension strength obtained by hand-held dynamometry from adults 60 to 79 years were derived using summary data from 3 studies. The studies, which were identified through PubMed and a hand-search, contributed data from between 3 and 29 individuals for each age, gender, and side stratum. Meta-analysis was employed to consolidate knee extension strength data. Strength, normalized against body weight, ranged 35.6% for the nondominant side of 70 to 79 year old women to 48.8% for the nondominant side of 60 to 69 year old men. These values are more informative than those previously published in individual studies. However, reference values derived from a large population-based sample are needed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 127 (4) ◽  
pp. 671-683
Author(s):  
João P. Nunes ◽  
Paolo M. Cunha ◽  
Jerry L. Mayhew ◽  
Alex S. Ribeiro ◽  
Paulo S. Junior ◽  
...  

The present study aimed to evaluate the influence of holding the chair handles during the assessment of older women’s knee flexion and extension isokinetic and isometric strength. Of 57 older women (≥60 years) selected from a convenience sample for this research, 23 were randomly chosen to perform the tests twice for reliability analyses. Each participant performed maximal isokinetic knee extension and flexion at 60°/s and 180°/s angular velocities and isometric tests under two conditions: (a) holding the lateral handle of the chair (HOLD) and (b) supporting the hands on the shoulders with the arms crossed (i.e., not holding the handle [NHOLD]). Participants performed significantly better in the HOLD compared with the NHOLD condition. Slightly lower intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC = 0.870–0.956) were noted for the HOLD than for the NHOLD condition (ICC = 0.900–0.981) so that the HOLD performance on Days 1 and 2 was different on some measures. Owing to the higher reliability coefficients in the NHOLD condition, results suggest that, when assessing knee strength in older women, the evaluee should place their hands over their shoulders with arms crossed in front of the chest (NHOLD) to maximize assessment reliability (reproducibility of performance).


1980 ◽  
Vol 21 (Supplement) ◽  
pp. S3
Author(s):  
A. V. Ng ◽  
J. C. Agre ◽  
M. S. Harrington ◽  
F. J. Nagle

Author(s):  
Maria de Cássia Macedo ◽  
Matheus Almeida Souza ◽  
Kariny Realino Ferreira ◽  
Laura Oliveira Campos ◽  
Igora Sérgio Oliveira Souza ◽  
...  

The objective was to assess the instrumental validity and the test-retest reliability of a low-cost hand-held push dynamometer adapted from a load-cell based hanging scale (tHHD) to collect compressive forces in different ranges of compressive forces. Three independent raters applied 50 pre-established compressions each on the tHHD centered on a force platform in 3 distinct ranges: ~70 N, ~160 N, ~250 N. Knee isometric strength was also assessed on 19 subjects in two sessions (48h apart) using the tHHD anchored by an inelastic adjustable strap. Knee extension and flexion were assessed with the participant seated on a chair with the feet resting on the floor, knees, and hips flexed at 90°. The isometric force peaks were recorded and compared. The ICC and the Cronbach’s α showed excellent consistency and agreement for both instrumental validity and test-retest reliability, as the correlation and determination coefficients. The SEM and the MDC analysis returned adequate low values with a coefficient of variation less than 5%. The Bland-Altman results showed consistency and high levels of agreement. The tHHD is a valid method to assess the knee isometric strength, showing portability, cost-effectiveness, and user-friendly interface to provide an effective form to assess the knee isometric strength.


Author(s):  
Gareth James Richard York ◽  
Hugh Osborne ◽  
Piyanee Sriya ◽  
Sarah Astill ◽  
Marc de Kamps ◽  
...  

The influence of proprioceptive feedback on muscle activity during isometric tasks is the subject of conflicting studies. We performed an isometric knee extension task experiment based on two common clinical tests for mobility and flexibility. The task was carried out at four pre-set angles of the knee and we recorded from five muscles for two different hip positions. We applied muscle synergy analysis using non-negative matrix factorisation on surface electromyograph recordings to identify patterns in the data which changed with internal knee angle, suggesting a link between proprioception and muscle activity. We hypothesised that such patterns arise from the way proprioceptive and cortical signals are integrated in neural circuits of the spinal cord. Using the MIIND neural simulation platform, we developed a computational model based on current understanding of spinal circuits with an adjustable afferent input. The model produces the same synergy trends as observed in the data, driven by changes in the afferent input. In order to match the activation patterns from each knee angle and position of the experiment, the model predicts the need for three distinct inputs: two to control a non-linear bias towards the extensors and against the flexors, and a further input to control additional inhibition of rectus femoris. The results show that proprioception may be involved in modulating muscle synergies encoded in cortical or spinal neural circuits.


1989 ◽  
Vol 21 (Supplement) ◽  
pp. S3
Author(s):  
A. V. Ng ◽  
J. C. Agre ◽  
M. S. Harrington ◽  
F. J. Nagle

Diagnostics ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 186
Author(s):  
Maria de Cássia Macedo ◽  
Matheus Almeida Souza ◽  
Kariny Realino Ferreira ◽  
Laura Oliveira Campos ◽  
Igor Sérgio Oliveira Souza ◽  
...  

The objective was to assess the instrumental validity and the test–retest reliability of a low-cost hand-held push dynamometer adapted from a load-cell based hanging scale (tHHD) to collect compressive forces in different ranges of compressive forces. Three independent raters applied 50 pre-established compressions each on the tHHD centered on a force platform in three distinct ranges: ~70 N, ~160 N, ~250 N. Knee isometric strength was also assessed on 19 subjects in two sessions (48 h apart) using the tHHD anchored by an inelastic adjustable strap. Knee extension and flexion were assessed with the participant seated on a chair with the feet resting on the floor, knees, and hips flexed at 90°. The isometric force peaks were recorded and compared. The ICC and the Cronbach’s α showed excellent consistency and agreement for both instrumental validity and test–retest reliability (range: 0.89–0.99), as the correlation and determination coefficients (range: 0.80–0.99). The SEM and the MDC analysis returned adequate low values with a coefficient of variation less than 5%. The Bland–Altman results showed consistency and high levels of agreement. The tHHD is a valid method to assess the knee isometric strength, showing portability, cost-effectiveness, and user-friendly interface to provide an effective form to assess the knee isometric strength.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-5
Author(s):  
Richard W. Bohannon

BACKROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Grip and knee strength are commonly measured but controversy exists as to whether either is a proxy for the other. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to summarize the correlation between the 2 variables. METHODS: Relevant literature was sought using PubMed, Google, and a hand search. Information on populations, measurements, and correlations were extracted. Correlational data were subjected to meta-analysis. RESULTS: Results from 17 studies were consolidated. The summary correlation between grip and knee extension strength was 0.64 with 95% CI of 0.57 to 0.71. Data were highly heterogeneous but did not show publication bias. CONCLUSION: The correlation between the grip and knee extension strength is good. However, it is not good enough to justify using either as a proxy for the other.


2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 297-311
Author(s):  
José David Moreno ◽  
José A. León ◽  
Lorena A. M. Arnal ◽  
Juan Botella

Abstract. We report the results of a meta-analysis of 22 experiments comparing the eye movement data obtained from young ( Mage = 21 years) and old ( Mage = 73 years) readers. The data included six eye movement measures (mean gaze duration, mean fixation duration, total sentence reading time, mean number of fixations, mean number of regressions, and mean length of progressive saccade eye movements). Estimates were obtained of the typified mean difference, d, between the age groups in all six measures. The results showed positive combined effect size estimates in favor of the young adult group (between 0.54 and 3.66 in all measures), although the difference for the mean number of fixations was not significant. Young adults make in a systematic way, shorter gazes, fewer regressions, and shorter saccadic movements during reading than older adults, and they also read faster. The meta-analysis results confirm statistically the most common patterns observed in previous research; therefore, eye movements seem to be a useful tool to measure behavioral changes due to the aging process. Moreover, these results do not allow us to discard either of the two main hypotheses assessed for explaining the observed aging effects, namely neural degenerative problems and the adoption of compensatory strategies.


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