We

Proprioceptive sensory information from the ankle joint is critical for the control of upright posture and balance. r We examined the influence of age (n = 54 healthy adults, 20-82 years old) on lower limb muscle responses to proprioceptive perturbations evoked by Achilles tendon vibration during standing. r The frequency bandwidth of the muscle response became narrower, and the gain (the muscle response relative to the stimulus) and scaling (increases in response amplitude with increases in stimulus amplitude) decreased with age. r Mechanics of the muscle-tendon unit (mechanical admittance) did not differ with age during standing, and thus probably did not mediate the age-related changes observed in soleus muscle responses to vibration. r These findings add to our understanding of how altered proprioceptive responses may contribute to impaired mobility and falls with ageing.

No abstract