Evaluation of the controlled grip force exertion tasks associated with age, gender, handedness and target force level.

INTRODUCTION: Force control of the hand is an essential factor for operating tools and moving objects. Therefore, a method for quantifying hand functionality more accurately and objectively is very important.

METHODS: The present study included 60 healthy participants (30 elderly and 30 young adults) to evaluate the effects of age, gender and target force levels on tracking performance. Tracking performance was quantified by measuring the difference between target force levels and exerted force.

RESULTS: Females exerted 59.6% of the maximum grip strength of males and the elderly group exerted 70.5% of maximum grip strength compared with the young group. The elderly group showed 3.1 times larger tracking error than the young group. There was a significant difference in females between the young and elderly groups, indicating age-related decline in hand function is more pronounced in females. The difference in grip force control ability between the elderly and young groups was significant at the low target force level (5% maximum voluntary contraction).

CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study could be used for hand function evaluation guidelines. In addition, this study could be used as a tool for physiotherapy to improve hand function and prevent its decline in elderly people.