Screening and prevention of locomotive syndrome in middle-aged adults

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 17K09106
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Epidemiology and preventive medicine
• Research Institution: Mie University
• Principal Investigator: Nishimura Akinobu 三重大学, 医学系研究科, 寄附講座講師 (10508526)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 須藤 啓広 三重大学, 医学系研究科, 教授 (60196904) ; 大槻 誠 鈴鹿医療科学大学, 保健衛生学部, 准教授 (60367878)
• Project Period (FY): 2017-04-01 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: ロコモティブシンドローム / 勤労世代 / トレーニング / 介護予防 / ロコトレ

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Locomotive syndrome (LS), a condition that increases caregiving needs and the risk of locomotor system impairment, has been reported to occur not only in the elderly but also in a certain percentage of the working-age population. On the other hand, while locomotive training (LT), which involves squatting and one-legged standing, has been recommended for the elderly to prevent and improve locomotion, there are few reports on its effectiveness for younger individuals. Our study aimed to investigate changes in locomotion and motor function before and after an intervention. One company implemented LT during morning meetings at work, while the other company did not receive any intervention. The results indicated that the intervention group showed improvements in quadriceps strength and LS stage, whereas the non-intervention group showed no improvement. These findings suggest that LT could have a certain effect on the working-age population.

Free Research Field

整形外科

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

スクワットと片脚立ちからなるロコトレは高齢者のロコモ予防、介護予防を目的に提唱され、一定の効果が報告されてきた。しかしながら勤労世代のような若年者においての有用性については不明であった。本研究では勤労世代であっても、ロコトレを継続することで筋力改善やロコモ予防に一定の効果が期待できることが示された。