Inai Takuma, Takabayashi Tomoya
Integrated Research Center for Self-Care Technology, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), 2217-14 Hayashi-cho, Takamatsu, Kagawa, 761-0395, Japan.
Health and Medical Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Takamatsu, Kagawa, Japan.
Sci Rep. 2025 Aug 11;15(1):29375. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-14442-w.
Muscle weakness is a significant concern in older women, as it increases the risk of falls and fractures. To develop practical tools for early detection, it is important to understand how hand grip strength relates to gait parameters in non-laboratory settings. This study examined the relationship between hand grip strength and gait characteristics in older women, using a foot-mounted sensor during natural walking. Publicly available data from 55 women aged > 70 years were analyzed. Each woman wore an inertial measurement unit attached to their shoe and completed a 30-min walking task. Hand grip strength was used as a general indicator of muscle strength. The mean and coefficient of variation (CV) were calculated for 18 gait parameters, including spatiotemporal parameters and foot pitch angles. Hand grip strength showed significant correlations with several mean gait parameters, including the percentage of the stance phase (r = -0.57) and the timing of the minimum foot pitch angle (r = -0.59). While hand grip strength was significantly correlated with the CV of several gait parameters, the strongest r value was -0.34. These findings suggest that mean gait parameters may better reflect hand grip strength than their CV.
肌肉无力是老年女性的一个重大问题，因为它会增加跌倒和骨折的风险。为了开发早期检测的实用工具，了解在非实验室环境中握力与步态参数之间的关系很重要。本研究在自然行走过程中使用足部传感器，研究了老年女性握力与步态特征之间的关系。分析了55名年龄大于70岁女性的公开可用数据。每位女性都佩戴了一个附着在鞋子上的惯性测量单元，并完成了一项30分钟的行走任务。握力被用作肌肉力量的一般指标。计算了18个步态参数的平均值和变异系数（CV），包括时空参数和足部俯仰角。握力与几个平均步态参数显著相关，包括站立期百分比（r = -0.57）和最小足部俯仰角的时间（r = -0.59）。虽然握力与几个步态参数的CV显著相关，但最强的r值为-0.34。这些发现表明，平均步态参数可能比其CV更能反映握力。
