Table 3.
During stance phase, peak wave speed and stress (mean (SD)) were significantly lower in the older adults than those in the young adults (main effect p < 0.01, no significant group-by-speed interactions). Young adults tended to have higher forces than older adults, but the main effect of group on tendon force was not significant (p = 0.08). There was a significant main effect of speed in all three metrics (p < 0.01).
| Wave Speed (m/s) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Young | Older | Speed Mean | |
| 0.75 m/s | 72.5 (12.3) | 56.6 (9.1) | 64.5 (13.4) |
| 1.00 m/s | 74.2 (12.8) | 57.9 (10.2) | 66.1 (14.1) |
| 1.25 m/s | 75.8 (13.0) | 59.2 (10.4) | 67.5 (14.3) |
| 1.50 m/s | 75.5 (11.7) | 60.2 (10.7) | 67.9 (13.5) |
| Group Mean | 74.5 (12.2) | 58.5 (9.9) | |
| Stress (MPa) | |||
| Young | Older | Speed Mean | |
| 0.75 m/s | 34.8 (12.7) | 23.1 (9.1) | 29.0 (12.3) |
| 1.00 m/s | 36.6 (13.7) | 24.2 (9.6) | 30.4 (13.2) |
| 1.25 m/s | 38.2 (14.1) | 25.5 (10.6) | 31.8 (13.8) |
| 1.50 m/s | 37.2 (10.7) | 26.4 (11.1) | 31.8 (12.0) |
| Group Mean | 36.7 (12.5) | 24.8 (9.9) | |
| Force (BW) | |||
| Young | Older | Speed Mean | |
| 0.75 m/s | 2.87 (0.86) | 2.27 (0.80) | 2.57 (0.87) |
| 1.00 m/s | 2.97 (0.72) | 2.39 (0.88) | 2.68 (0.84) |
| 1.25 m/s | 3.11 (0.77) | 2.51 (0.95) | 2.81 (0.91) |
| 1.50 m/s | 3.08 (0.68) | 2.61 (1.06) | 2.84 (0.91) |
| Group Mean | 3.01 (0.75) | 2.44 (0.91) | |