Older adults maintained effective leg muscle pumping when tilted
In an experiment involving 14 healthy younger and 14 healthy older adults, tilting head-up improved the efficiency of calf muscles pumping blood.
Limit: Only 14 healthy older adults were studied
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
In an experiment comparing age groups, 14 healthy younger adults averaging 26 years old, including seven women, and 14 healthy older adults averaging 76, including nine women, underwent leg-vein tests. Researchers tested them tilted 3 degrees head-down and 20 degrees head-up. Participants performed calf contractions at 8 kilograms and half their maximum strength. Researchers used ultrasound and changes in lower-leg volume to assess blood flow and muscle pumping.
Moving from head-down to head-up increased blood flow, the volume of blood pumped out and muscle pump efficiency in both groups. Thigh-vein diameter increased by 41.3% in younger adults versus 23.0% in older adults. Despite veins’ reduced ability to stretch, older adults maintained effective muscle pumping under these conditions. The authors suggested that the age groups used different ways to manage blood flow.
Why it matters
Aging is associated with less flexible veins and altered muscle pumping. The study addresses how these changes relate to blood returning from the legs under changes in body position.
Caveats
This small comparison between age groups cannot show that aging caused the differences between groups. Its findings may not extend beyond healthy adults or the tested positions and contractions.
