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A STUDY OF THE FATIGUE‐INDUCED INCREASE IN SKELETAL MUSCLE VOLTAGE IN TWO AGE GROUPS
Author(s) -
Carlson Karl E.,
Smyth Kenneth D.
Publication year - 1968
Publication title -
journal of the american geriatrics society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.992
H-Index - 232
eISSN - 1532-5415
pISSN - 0002-8614
DOI - 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1968.tb02757.x
Subject(s) - isometric exercise , medicine , biceps , contraction (grammar) , age groups , muscle contraction , skeletal muscle , significant difference , surgery , demography , sociology
A bstract The voltage gain in human muscle under conditions of prolonged isometric contraction was measured in 24 subjects—12 “young normal” subjects whose ages ranged from 26 to 53 years, and 12 “normal over‐65” subjects whose ages ranged from 66 to 78 years. In terms of rate of voltage increase and initial voltage, there was little or no difference between the two age groups. The mean percentage increase in voltage for the older group was about half that for the younger group. However, this was interpreted on the basis of about a 50 per cent reduction in contraction time for the older group. Skeletal muscle fatigue when the biceps brachii muscles were subjected to prolonged isometric contraction developed in the over‐65 group in about the same manner (electrically) as in the young group. The only significant difference was the ability of the younger subjects to sustain the contraction about twice as long as did the older subjects.