Quadriceps fatigue caused by catchlike-inducing trains is not altered in old age

The relative loss of peak force from electrical stimulation protocols has provided inconsistent results when used to compare muscle fatigability between young and old adults. In addition to the effect of task on these comparisons, age-related alterations in the development and relaxation of force are possible factors that have not been considered. The purposes of this study were to compare the fatigability of the quadriceps of young (26.7 +/- 1.0 years) and old men (78.3 +/- 1.3 years), as assessed by changes in peak force, force time integral (FTI), and half-relaxation time (HRT), during intermittent electrical stimulation protocols, and to determine whether manipulation of the activation frequency affected the comparisons. Fatigue was caused by constant-frequency (CF), and catchlike-inducing (CI) train protocols, both of which consisted of intermittent trains (6 pulses on: 650 ms off) of stimulation. After each protocol, the force-generating capacity of the fatigued muscle was assessed with three trains of stimuli: a CF train, a CI train and a 1-s 50-HZ train. There was no effect of age on the loss of peak force or the development of low-frequency fatigue induced by either protocol. Conversely, irrespective of the protocol, the FTI was better maintained by approximately 9% in the old than young men. Because peak force did not differ between groups during fatigue, it is likely that the FTI was preserved by the exacerbated slowing of HRT in the quadriceps of the old men. The results confirm an apparent paradox between muscle fatigue and stimulation with CI trains: a single CI train produces greater force than a CF train in a fatigued muscle, but there is greater fatigue induced by repetitive CI than CF train stimulation. Old age did not affect this fatigue paradox.