Relationship between regional neuromuscular regulation within human rectus femoris muscle and lower extremity kinematics during gait in elderly men

Abstract

Biomechanical and neurophysiological mechanisms of age-related gait dysfunction have not been fully understood. We aimed to investigate the relationship between region-specific electromyography (EMG) response of the rectus femoris (RF) muscle and lower extremity kinematics during swing phase of gait for the elderly. For thirteen elderly men (age: mean 71.3 years, standard deviation 5.7 years), multi-channel surface EMG from the proximal to distal regions of the RF muscle and lower extremity kinematics were measured during normal gait on a treadmill. At minimum foot clearance during swing phase, relationship between central locus activation (CLA), which is indicator of spatial distribution of surface EMG along the RF muscle and lower joint kinematics were calculated. No significant correlations were found between CLA and any joint angle (p > 0.05). The results of our study suggested that regional neuromuscular activation of the RF muscle is not associated to lower extremity joint movements and toe clearance strategy during gait in the elderly.

Keywords: Ageing; Bi-articular muscles; Multi-channel surface electromyography; Neuromuscular compartment.