title: Effect of age on voluntary force and cross-sectional area of human adductor pollicis muscle.
abstract: Muscle weakness accompanies ageing but its causes are still uncertain. We report maximum voluntary force measurements of adductor pollicis muscle, normalized for cross-sectional area, in twenty-three elderly subjects. Normalized force was lower in the elderly compared with a group of fifty-five young adult subjects by 27 +/- 4% (S.E.M.). This shows that atrophy alone is not the cause of the weakness of old age.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine for the Elderly, St Helen's Hospital, Hastings, London.
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Bruce
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Newton
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Woledge
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009119:Muscle Contraction; D024510:Muscle Development; D009132:Muscles / Q000502:physiology