Fatigability of Lower Limb Muscle in Older Adults: Protective Effects of Strength Training Exercise in Old Men and Women

NCT ID: NCT03888040

Last Updated: 2025-02-11

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: RECRUITING
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 120 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2020-09-01
• Study Completion Date: 2025-08-31

Brief Summary

The proposed studies will assess 1) the mechanisms for the age-related increase in fatigability during dynamic exercise (Aims 1 and 2) and 2) the effectiveness of high-velocity resistance training coupled with blood flow restriction (BFR) in improving muscle power output and fatigability in older adults (Aim 3). The first two aims are cross-sectional studies comparing young (18-35 years old) and older adults (≥60 yrs old) to test our central hypothesis that the greater accumulation of metabolites and increase in fatigability in older adults is due to either age-related impairments in skeletal muscle bioenergetics (Aim 1) and/or vascular dysfunction (Aim 2). These two aims will integrate techniques to assess whole-muscle bioenergetics (31P-MRS) and in vivo vascular function (near infrared spectroscopy; NIRS and doppler ultrasonography) with in vitro assessment of single fiber bioenergetics (epifluorescence microscopy) and vasoreactivity of isolated skeletal muscle arterioles (video microscopy). We will then determine whether bioenergetics, vascular function and fatigability are altered in older men and women in response to 8 weeks of resistance exercise training of the lower limb both with and without blood flow restriction (Aim 3).

Conditions

Aging

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Blood Flow Restriction Training

This leg will then perform low-load resistance training (30% of 1-RM) including 3 sets of 15 knee extensions performed as fast as possible while seated upright in a knee extension weight machine. Sets will be interspersed with 30 seconds rest. This leg will always perform the training with blood flow restriction.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Exercise

Intervention Type: OTHER

The participant will attend 3 training sessions per week for 8 weeks. Resistance training will be performed by each leg with a load of 30% of maximal strength: one leg with and the other without blood flow restriction.

Resistance Training Only

This leg will then perform low-load resistance training (30% of 1-RM) including 3 sets of 15 knee extensions performed as fast as possible while seated upright in a knee extension weight machine. Sets will be interspersed with 30 seconds rest. This leg will always perform the training without blood flow restriction.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Exercise

Intervention Type: OTHER

The participant will attend 3 training sessions per week for 8 weeks. Resistance training will be performed by each leg with a load of 30% of maximal strength: one leg with and the other without blood flow restriction.

Interventions

Exercise

The participant will attend 3 training sessions per week for 8 weeks. Resistance training will be performed by each leg with a load of 30% of maximal strength: one leg with and the other without blood flow restriction.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• men and women aged 18-40 years and >60 years

Exclusion Criteria

• body mass index ≥40 kg/m2;
• type 1 or type 2 diabetes;
• uncontrolled hypertension;
• active cancer, cancer in remission, or having received treatment for any form of cancer in the previous five years;
• coronary artery disease;
• cardiovascular disease (e.g., PAD, PVD);
• abnormal and untreated thyroid function;
• chronic and/or regular nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) consumption,
• tobacco use (includes smoking);
• any condition that presents a limitation to exercise (e.g., severe arthritis, COPD, neuromuscular disorder, moderate or severe cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's Disease, severe untreated sleep apnea).
• women who are pregnant or likely to be pregnant.
• Subjects will be excluded if they have joint pain in the exercising leg or arm. Medication use. Medications currently taken or in the previous year and known to influence muscle mass (e.g., glucocorticoids, testosterone) and cortical and neuromuscular excitability will be exclusionary, while medications that may be prevalent among older adults (e.g., statins) will be accounted for with a covariate statistical model.

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 100 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

National Institute on Aging (NIA)

NIH

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Medical College of Wisconsin

OTHER

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Marquette University

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Locations

Marquette University

Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States

Site Status: RECRUITING

Countries

United States

Central Contacts

Christopher W Sundberg, PhD

Role: CONTACT

christopher.sundberg@marquette.edu

414-288-5607

Sarah Lessila

Role: CONTACT

slessila@umich.edu

Facility Contacts

Christopher W Sundberg, PhD

Role: primary

christopher.sundberg@marquette.edu

414-288-5607

Other Identifiers

HR-2945

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

R01AG048262

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: secondary_id

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