Different muscle strategy during head/knee level of functional reaching-transporting task to decrease falling probability in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis.
Marzie Hatami, Giti Torkaman, Mohammad Najafi Ashtiani and 1 others
PMID 37161595WHAT IT FOUND
Postmenopausal women with osteoporosis used more muscle activity to reach and transport objects, especially at knee level.
They also had weaker leg muscles and higher fear of falling. The study did not test if this strategy prevents falls.
Key findings
01Women with osteoporosis showed significantly higher muscle activity in the vastus lateralis and gastrocnemius lateralis during the transporting phase compared to non-osteoporotic women.
02The osteoporotic group had significantly lower maximum voluntary isometric contraction strength in the tibialis anterior, gastrocnemius lateralis, and biceps femoris.
03There was no significant interaction between bone mineral density status and the level of reaching on leg muscle activity.
STILL TO COME
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What it does not show
The sample size was small (24 participants), limiting the generalizability of the findings. The study excluded women with a history of falling in the past year, so the results do not apply to those who have already fallen. The study was cross-sectional and did not measure actual falls or long-term outcomes, so it cannot prove that the observed muscle strategies cause or prevent falls. Center of pressure (CoP) sway was not recorded, so the direct link between the observed muscle activity and postural stability was not measured.
Declared interests
None reported.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the higher muscle activity in women with osteoporosis as a successful protective strategy. The study did not measure falls, and the authors note this increased activity in weaker muscles may lead to fatigue and instability, potentially increasing fall risk rather than decreasing it.