The Correlation Between Peak Expiratory Flow and Abdominal Muscle Thickness in Elderly Females

Abstract

Background: Death from pneumonia is more common in elderly individuals. Expiratory flow plays an important role in minimizing the risk of infection by expelling foreign substances and excessive mucus from the lungs. Expiratory flow results primarily from the activities of abdominal muscles. As part of the normative aging process, there is a decline in muscle thickness. However, little is known about the association of abdominal muscle thickness and expiratory flow rate. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare the relationships between peak expiratory flow and individual and combined abdominal muscle thickness in elderly subjects.

Association between abdominal muscle stiffness, diaphragm thickness and peak expiratory flow in younger versus older adults

“…Additionally, the results of the present study showed a moderate correlation between the SIR in the TrA and PEF in younger adults, whereas no correlation was found in older adults. Previous studies have reported that PEF correlates with the thickness of different abdominal muscles in both younger and older adults (Ishida et al, 2014, 2017); however, because these studies assessed the absolute abdominal thickness and not the change in thickness during expiration, it is unclear whether the reported correlation has a relationship with TrA stiffness. Another study showed a positive correlation between internal oblique activity and PEF while maintaining maximum expiration in older adults (Ishida et al, 2020), which may explain why expiration in older adults is strongly related to the internal oblique muscles.…”

“…These changes in the musculoskeletal structure and cells decrease the capacity of muscles to generate force (Şendur et al, 2020), and are also associated with decreased muscle stiffness, which is positively related to the contraction strength of the muscle (Akagi et al, 2015). Several studies have demonstrated that muscle stiffness is significantly higher in younger versus older adults (Do et al, 2021) abdominal muscles in both younger and older adults (Ishida et al, 2014(Ishida et al, , 2017; however, because these studies assessed the absolute abdominal thickness and not the change in thickness during expiration, it is unclear whether the reported correlation has a relationship with TrA stiffness. Another study showed a positive correlation between internal oblique activity and PEF while maintaining maximum expiration in older adults (Ishida et al, 2020) The correlation between diaphragmatic thickness and PEF was moderate in younger adults, while it was found to be weak in older adults, which may be due to the change in muscle fibre type and the ratio that occurs with aging.…”

“…Moreover, it is important to note that respiratory function can be influenced by multiple factors, including age‐associated decreases in lung volumes and chest wall compliance, which can lead to decreased respiratory function (Adachi et al, 2015; Cho & Stout‐Delgado, 2020). Ishida et al (2017) suggested that this may also contribute to changes in abdominal muscle thickness (TrA and internal obliques) and PEF.…”