Muscle Function in Elderly Postoperative Patients

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Rehabilitation Strategies for Elderly Post-Operative Patients
• Interventions: Behavioral: Resistance training; Behavioral: Neuromuscular electrical stimulation of the quadriceps muscle; Behavioral: Standard rehabilitation

• Registration Number: NCT00559780
• Lead Sponsor: Bispebjerg Hospital

Brief Summary

During the last decades there has been an increase in the relative proportion and life expectancy of elderly people in the industrialised countries. Consequently the amount of elderly with diseases and disabilities related to aging has increased. It therefore appears paramount to gain a better understanding of how disuse and immobilisation affects neuromuscular properties in the elderly, as well as to identify training regimes that ensures an effective rehabilitation.The population of interest in the present study was elderly individuals with long term hip-osteoarthritis undergoing a hip-replacement operation. The study was divided in two parts, a cross-sectional study and an intervention study.

The cross-sectional study investigated muscle size, maximal muscle strength, specific force, neural drive and explosive muscle force characteristics in elderly individuals who were affected by unilateral prolonged disuse due to hip-osteoarthritis. The data clearly indicated that the side with hip-osteoarthritis was affected by a marked decrease in muscle mass, maximal muscle strength, neural drive and explosive muscle force characteristics compared to the unaffected side.

The intervention study investigated if elderly patients that undergo hip-replacement surgery could benefit from additional training in the early postoperative phase. The data clearly demonstrated that resistance training was an effective and safe way to increase muscle mass, maximal muscle strength, neuromuscular activity, functional performance and decrease the hospitalisation period compared to regimes of conventional rehabilitation regimen or electrical muscle stimulation. Additionally the intervention study demonstrated that resistance training effectively induced marked increases in explosive muscle force characteristics in elderly subjects compared to rehabilitation regimes using electrical muscle stimulation or conventional rehabilitation. Furthermore, the gains in maximal muscle strength and explosive muscle force characteristics were accompanied by significant increases in EMG amplitudes. Furthermore, the demonstration that explosive muscle force capacity of the neuromuscular system remains trainable in elderly recovering from prolonged limb disuse and major surgery may have important implications for future rehabilitation programs, especially when considering the importance of rapid muscle force capacity on postural balance, maximal walking speed and other tasks of daily life actions.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2000-05
• Study Completion: 2003-12
• Status Verified: 2007-11
• Study First Submitted: 2007-11-15
• Study First Submitted QC: 2007-11-15
• Last Update Submitted: 2007-11-15
• Study First Posted: 2007-11-16
• Last Update Posted: 2007-11-16

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 36

Inclusion Criteria

• Age over 60 years
• Unilateral primary hip replacement due to hip osteoarthritis in patients

Exclusion Criteria

• Cardiopulmonary, neurological or cognitive problems

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
1	Resistance training	12 weeks of resistance training
2	Neuromuscular electrical stimulation of the quadriceps muscle	12 weeks of neuromuscular electrical stimulation
3	Standard rehabilitation	12 weeks of standard rehabilitation

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Institute of Sports Medicine, Bispebjerg Hospital; 🇩🇰 Copenhagen, Denmark