What are the effects of the aging of the neuromuscular system on postural stability?

Thomas Cattagni (1) , Gil Scaglioni (2) , Christophe Cornu (1) , Gilles Berrut (1, 3) , Alain Martin (2)

1 MIP - Motricité, interactions, performance EA 4334 / Movement - Interactions - Performance
2 CAPS - Cognition, Action, et Plasticité Sensorimotrice [Dijon - U1093]
3 Service de médecine aïgue gériatrique [Nantes]

Aging is frequently associated with a decreased postural stability, essentially after 60 years, leading to an increased risk of falling. In this article we propose to highlight the influence of the aging of the neuromuscular system on postural stability when standing upright. To maintain balance while standing upright, human needs to control the activity of ankle muscles and particularly the plantar flexors. During the aging process, the performance of these muscles are strongly altered. It is commonly observed large deficits in elderly people with history of falls. Some authors reported an inverse correlation between the amplitude of postural sway and the capacity of force production of ankle muscles suggesting that the assessment of neuromuscular function could be an index of postural stability or even of the falling risk. Finally, enhance the strength of ankle muscles in elderly through physical exercise could be an adequate intervention to improve postural stability and reduce the incidence of falls.

Mots clés: aging; balance control; ankle muscles; fall; postural stability; age-related-changes; soleus h-reflex; human skeletal-muscle; length-tension relationship; nursing-home residents; older-adults; elderly adults; triceps surae; mechanical-properties; risk-factors

Domaines: Neurosciences [q-bio.NC]

Thomas Cattagni, Gil Scaglioni, Christophe Cornu, Gilles Berrut, Alain Martin. What are the effects of the aging of the neuromuscular system on postural stability?. Gériatrie et psychologie & neuropsychiatrie du vieillissement, 2015, 13 (4), pp.363-380. ⟨10.1684/pnv.2015.0570⟩. ⟨hal-01304196⟩