Single leg Stance Duration sensitive and reliable marker of Measure of Neuromuscular Aging, finds study

• Gait was relatively preserved by aging, and the p-value was nonsignificant indicating no significant changes (p≥0.12).

• Both grip strength and knee strength declined significantly with advancing age. The strength measure showed the smallest decline with each decade. Grip strength declined by -0.34 SDs, and the decline for knee strength was -0.26 SDs.

• All of the participants achieved steady bipedal balance, but the center of pressure movement was substantially increased with age (p≤0.028).

• Both stance durations for the non-dominant and dominant legs decreased with advancing age, and these declines were highly significant; however, the loss of stance duration by decade was more pronounced for the non-dominant leg than the dominant leg (-0.62 SDs vs -0.53 SDs respectively).

• Notable sex differences were identified only for strength measures, where males had higher grip and knee strength than females.

Unipedal stance time proves to be an appropriate and gender-insensitive indicator of neuromuscular aging having the strong perspective of potential application in the conduct of a geriatric health evaluation.As aging populations continue to grow, reliable assessments like unipedal stance can support proactive care and intervention, improving health outcomes and quality of life for older adults.

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