Age-related changes in upper extremity performance of elderly people: a longitudinal study

The objective of this research was to study age-related changes in the upper extremity performance of healthy community-dwelling elderly people, by using a longitudinal design. In 1995-1996. gross and fine manual dexterity, global performance, motor coordination, grip strength, tactile recognition, two-point discrimination, touch/pressure threshold, and tactile localization of 264 of the 360 subjects initially evaluated in 1992-1993 were reevaluated by using the same upper extremity measuring instruments. Those who did not participate (n = 96) were found to be significantly different from those who participated in the longitudinal study. Although the survivors were younger, more active, and perceived themselves in better health than the nonparticipants, their upper extremity performance significantly decreased in the 3-year period, with a few exceptions. In general, the decline was related to the initial score but not to age.

[1]  Age-related differences in isometric and dynamic strength and endurance. , 1982, Physical therapy.

[2]  R. Hébert,et al.  The Purdue Pegboard Test: normative data for people aged 60 and over. , 1995, Disability and rehabilitation.

[3]  E. Jones,et al.  Strength and function in the normal and rheumatoid hand. , 1991, The Journal of rheumatology.

[4]  Mark E. Williams,et al.  Manual ability as a marker of dependency in geriatric women. , 1982, Journal of chronic diseases.

[5]  N. Silberberg,et al.  Hand strength and dexterity. , 1971, The American journal of occupational therapy : official publication of the American Occupational Therapy Association.

[6]  K. Syndulko,et al.  Human Neurologic Function and the Aging Process † , 1980, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

[7]  L. Sperling,et al.  Muscle function in 75-year-old men and women. A longitudinal study. , 1983, Scandinavian journal of rehabilitation medicine. Supplement.

[8]  R. Hébert,et al.  Upper-extremity motor co-ordination of healthy elderly people. , 1995, Age and ageing.

[9]  Réjean Hébert,et al.  Development and Reliability of an Upper Extremity Function Test for the Elderly: The TEMPA , 1993 .

[10]  V. Mathiowetz,et al.  Reliability and validity of grip and pinch strength evaluations. , 1984, The Journal of hand surgery.

[11]  R. Kane,et al.  Manual Dexterity as a Correlate of Dependency in the Elderly , 1989, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

[12]  S. Molbech.  Methods for measuring co-ordination and accuracy of muscular movements. , 1978, Scandinavian journal of rehabilitation medicine. Supplement.

[13]  R. Hébert,et al.  Normative data for grip strength of elderly men and women. , 1995, The American journal of occupational therapy : official publication of the American Occupational Therapy Association.

[14]  D. Carroll,et al.  A QUANTITATIVE TEST OF UPPER EXTREMITY FUNCTION. , 1965, Journal of chronic diseases.

[15]  A. LaCroix,et al.  Morbidity and disability in older persons in the years prior to death. , 1991, American journal of public health.

[16]  J. Schouten,et al.  Measurement of the handcoordination , 1990, Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery.

[17]  A. Dellon.  The moving two-point discrimination test: clinical evaluation of the quickly adapting fiber/receptor system. , 1978, The Journal of hand surgery.

[18]  J. Tiffin,et al.  The Purdue pegboard; norms and studies of reliability and validity. , 1948, The Journal of applied psychology.

[19]  S A Goldstein,et al.  Evaluation of normal values for stationary and moving two-point discrimination in the hand. , 1984, The Journal of hand surgery.

[20]  R. Hébert,et al.  Upper extremity performance test for the elderly (TEMPA): normative data and correlates with sensorimotor parameters. Test d'Evaluation des Membres Supérieurs de Personnes Agées. , 1995, Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation.

[21]  C. Rice,et al.  Strength in an elderly population. , 1989, Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation.

[22]  D Spiegelhalter,et al.  Incidence of functional decline and improvement in a community-dwelling, very elderly population. , 1997, American journal of epidemiology.

[23]  D. Kenshalo.  Somesthetic sensitivity in young and elderly humans. , 1986, Journal of gerontology.

[24]  S. J. Sullivan,et al.  Reliability of the scores for the finger-to-nose test in adults with traumatic brain injury. , 1993, Physical therapy.

[25]  V. Mathiowetz,et al.  Adult norms for the Box and Block Test of manual dexterity. , 1985, The American journal of occupational therapy : official publication of the American Occupational Therapy Association.

[26]  O. L. Zangwill,et al.  Somatosensory Changes after Penetrating Brain Wounds in Man , 1960 .

[27]  J. Sinacore,et al.  Self Report and Performance‐Based Hand Function Tests as Correlates of Dependency in the Elderly , 1991, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

[28]  J. Tobin,et al.  The role of muscle loss in the age-related decline of grip strength: cross-sectional and longitudinal perspectives. , 1990, Journal of gerontology.

[29]  L Sperling,et al.  Evaluation of upper extremity function in 70-year-old men and women. , 1980, Scandinavian journal of rehabilitation medicine.

[30]  M. Nakada.  Localization of a constant-touch and moving-touch stimulus in the hand: a preliminary study. , 1993, Journal of hand therapy : official journal of the American Society of Hand Therapists.

[31]  E. Rousseau,et al.  Measurement of Adult Hand Strength: A Comparison of Two Instruments , 1982 .

[32]  Denise C. Park,et al.  Handbook of the Psychology of Aging , 1979 .

[33]  J. Milne,et al.  A longitudinal study of handgrip and dementia in older people. , 1984, Age and Ageing.

[34]  R. Bornstein.  Normative data on intermanual differences on three tests of motor performance. , 1986, Journal of clinical and experimental neuropsychology.

[35]  E. Moberg,et al.  Objective methods for determining the functional value of sensibility in the hand. , 1958, The Journal of bone and joint surgery. British volume.

[36]  V. Mathiowetz,et al.  Grip and pinch strength: normative data for adults. , 1985, Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation.

[37]  J. Desrosiers,et al.  Validity of the TEMPA: A Measurement Instrument for Upper Extremity Performance , 1994 .

[38]  L Sperling,et al.  Functional studies in 79-year-olds. II. Upper extremity function. , 1983, Scandinavian journal of rehabilitation medicine.

[39]  E Heikkinen,et al.  Physical Activity and the Changes in Maximal Isometric Strength in Men and Women from the Age of 75 to 80 Years , 1997, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

[40]  Virgil G Mathiowetz,et al.  Grip and pinch strength , 1985 .

[41]  S. Chatterjee,et al.  Comparison of grip strength and isomeric endurance between the right and left hands of men and their relationship with age and other physical parameters. , 1991, Journal of human ergology.

[42]  B. Schweitz,et al.  NEUROMUSCULAR RESPONSE TESTS AS PREDICTORS OF SENSORY‐MOTOR PERFORMANCE IN AGING INDIVIDUALS , 1968, American Journal of Physical Medicine.

[43]  R. Hébert,et al.  Validation of the Box and Block Test as a measure of dexterity of elderly people: reliability, validity, and norms studies. , 1994, Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation.

[44]  Virgil G Mathiowetz,et al.  The Purdue Pegboard , 1986 .

[45]  Johanne Desrosiers,et al.  Hand Sensibility of Healthy Older People , 1996, Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.

[46]  E. Bassey,et al.  Normal values for handgrip strength in 920 men and women aged over 65 years, and longitudinal changes over 4 years in 620 survivors. , 1993, Clinical science.

[47]  R. Pool,et al.  TWO‐POINT DISCRIMINATION DISTANCES IN THE NORMAL HAND AND FOREARM , 1977, Plastic and reconstructive surgery.

[48]  A L Dellon,et al.  Two-point discrimination tester. , 1985, The Journal of hand surgery.

[49]  A L Dellon,et al.  Reliability of two-point discrimination measurements. , 1987, The Journal of hand surgery.

[50]  H. Vaughan,et al.  Purdue Pegboard as a predictor of the presence and laterality of cerebral lesions. , 1963, Journal of consulting psychology.

[51]  L. Sperling,et al.  Evaluation of adl-function--especially hand function. , 1978, Scandinavian journal of rehabilitation medicine. Supplement.