Skin tactile perception is associated with longitudinal gait performance in middle-aged and older Japanese community dwellers.

Abstract

Background: Skin tactile perception may indicate frailty in older adults. Although gait performance is crucial for diagnosing frailty, its association with skin tactile perception has not yet been explored.

Objectives: To examine the association between skin tactile perception and changes in step length, cadence, and gait speed in middle-aged and older adults.

Design: A longitudinal study (mean follow-up: 10.8 years) SETTING: Community-based survey PARTICIPANTS: A total of 1,403 middle-aged and older adults (aged 40-79 years, 53.6 % men) from the National Institute for Longevity Sciences-Longitudinal Study of Aging were included in this study. These participants completed the baseline survey (1997-2000) and at least two follow-up surveys (2000-2012), had no history of cerebrovascular disease, rheumatoid arthritis, or Parkinson's disease, and had complete data with no outliers in skin tactile perception measurements.

Measurements: Skin tactile perception was assessed using a two-point discrimination test. Step length (cm), cadence (steps/min), and gait speed (m/min) were evaluated on an 11-m walkway at a usual speed.

Results: The mean age of participants was 56.4 years. After full adjustment, mixed-effects models with splines revealed that the association between skin tactile perception and gait parameters varied with age. In adults aged 60 and above, we observed non-linear relationships between skin tactile perception and gait parameters. A consistent inflection point around 10 mm in tactile perception was identified across different age groups and gait parameters.

Conclusions: Among community-dwelling middle-aged and older Japanese adults, skin tactile perception was associated with changes in gait parameters, particularly in those aged 60 and above. The 10-mm threshold in tactile perception may serve as a critical indicator for predicting changes in gait performance. Skin tactile perception tests may prove clinically useful for screening patients at elevated risk of impaired gait performance.