Device Evaluating the Muscular Functional Age

Overview

The CHRONOS project aims to provide a device to detect earlier the motor decline, by developing a precise quantitative device measuring "Motor Functional Age" (MFA) of young, middle-aged and old people, thus preventing future functional motor loss for healthy aging. The MFA might be different from the Chronological Age (CA), depending on lifestyle, physical activity, and medical condition. Thus, this device will permit monitoring, adaptation and new design of a variety of personalized therapies for healthy aging including physical exercise, medication and nutritional interventions to reduce the MFA toward or less than the CA. The device combines data processing software that estimates the MFA by assessing muscle aging using a non-invasive multichannel electromyographical technique coupled to accelerometry sensors for motion evaluation. These data will provide with a built-in clinical database of subjects from different age categories (25-75 years old).

Background: Aging is accompanied by sarcopenia, defined by a loss in muscle mass (starting from the age of 25) and strength/function, leading to a decline in mobility. This functional motor decline is an increasing health problem with impairing functional independence and quality of life among seniors. Furthermore, a sedentary lifestyle reinforced by an abusive use of modern technology (videogames, transportation and communication) and poor dietary habits (often rich in sugar and fats and poor in high quality proteins) are more common in younger demographics than ever before. These unhealthy habits lead to premature muscle aging, sarcopenia and future functional motor loss. Methods to easily and rapidly assess muscle quality in multiple clinical settings and with minimal patient burden are needed. Moreover, an individual's CA, taken solely, is rarely a reliable index of an individual's ability to perform specific physical task. The proposed MFA concept is innovative since it precisely expresses the motor abilities through a sensitive screening of muscle activation using a recent HD-sEMG (High density-surface electromyogram) technique that is, by far, more robust, precise and representative than the classical single bipolar technique. Aim and Objectives: In the CHRONOS project, a device using HD-sEMG technology actually devoted to research actions only, even though CE-certified, will be designed by testing and combining data allowing one to assess the muscle activation efficiency and motion capacity (accelerometry sensors), as a function of CA. * Main objective : attribute a MFA to define the normal muscle aging from HD-sEMG and accelerometer signals correlated to muscular parameters obtained from Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DEXA), handgrip strength and muscular echography. Data will be collected in " reference " individuals, healthy volunteers, aged 25 to 75 years old. * Secondary objectives : 1. to evaluate the capacity of MFA to detect early muscle aging in " tests " individuals, sedentary volunteers within the same age group (45-55 years old). 2. study correlation between HD-sEMG/accelerometer signals and muscular parameters from DEXA, handgrip strength, physical performance by SPPB (Short Physical Performance battery), walking speed, walking distance in 6min, physical activity evaluated objectively by actimeter, and subjectively by IPAQ (International Physical Activity Questionnaire), muscle echography parameters, and nutritional data.