Quantitative evaluation of joint motion sensation in an aging population

Fifty-two neurologically normal subjects from 61 to 84 years in age were evaluated for sensitivity of perception of joint motion. Right and left metacarpophalangeal and metatarsophalangeal joints were passively moved in an ever-increasing amplitude in a sinusoidal flexion-extension mode. Precise measurements of the amplitude of the angle of deviation where the subjects felt motion were made and stored with the help of a computer. A younger cohort 19 to 34 years in age was also tested. The older subjects did less well in perceiving motion at the lowest frequency in the metatarsophalangeal joints. When the older cohort was separated in semidecades and compared to each other, as well as the younger cohort, all differences of motion threshold perception lost significance. It is concluded that there is no major decline in joint motion sensation with aging.