Translational and Clinical Research Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE4 5PL, UK.
National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), Newcastle Biomedical Research Centre (BRC), Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE4 5PL, UK.
Sensors (Basel). 2023 Aug 3;23(15):6921. doi: 10.3390/s23156921.
Gait speed declines with age and slower walking speeds are associated with poor health outcomes. Understanding why we do not walk faster as we age, despite being able to, has implications for rehabilitation. Changes in regional oxygenated haemoglobin (HbO2) across the frontal lobe were monitored using functional near infrared spectroscopy in 17 young and 18 older adults while they walked on a treadmill for 5 min, alternating between 30 s of walking at a preferred and fast (120% preferred) speed. Gait was quantified using a triaxial accelerometer (lower back). Differences between task (preferred/fast) and group (young/old) and associations between regional HbO2 and gait were evaluated. Paired tests indicated increased HbO2 in the supplementary motor area (right) and primary motor cortex (left and right) in older adults when walking fast ( < 0.006). HbO2 did not significantly change in the young when walking fast, despite both groups modulating gait. When evaluating the effect of age (linear mixed effects model), greater increases in HbO2 were observed for older adults when walking fast (prefrontal cortex, premotor cortex, supplementary motor area and primary motor cortex) compared to young adults. In older adults, increased step length and reduced step length variability were associated with larger increases in HbO2 across multiple regions when walking fast. Walking fast required increased activation of motor regions in older adults, which may serve as a therapeutic target for rehabilitation. Widespread increases in HbO2 across the frontal cortex highlight that walking fast represents a resource-intensive task as we age.
步态速度随年龄增长而下降，较慢的步行速度与较差的健康结果相关。了解为什么随着年龄的增长，我们不能走得更快，尽管我们有能力，这对康复有影响。在 17 名年轻和 18 名年长成年人在跑步机上行走 5 分钟时，使用功能近红外光谱监测额前叶的区域氧合血红蛋白 (HbO2) 的变化，期间交替进行 30 秒的以偏好和快速（120%偏好）速度行走。使用三轴加速度计（下背部）量化步态。评估任务（偏好/快速）和组（年轻/年长）之间的差异以及区域 HbO2 与步态之间的关联。配对检验表明，年长成年人在快速行走时，辅助运动区（右侧）和初级运动皮层（左侧和右侧）的 HbO2 增加（<0.006）。尽管两组都调节步态，但年轻人在快速行走时 HbO2 并没有明显变化。在评估年龄的影响（线性混合效应模型）时，与年轻人相比，年长成年人在快速行走时（前额叶皮层、运动前皮层、辅助运动区和初级运动皮层）HbO2 增加更大。在年长成年人中，当快速行走时，步长增加和步长变异性降低与多个区域 HbO2 的增加相关。快速行走需要年长成年人的运动区域增加激活，这可能是康复的治疗靶点。额前皮质中 HbO2 的广泛增加表明，随着年龄的增长，快速行走是一项资源密集型任务。
