The effect of sedentary work on trunk functions – in context of older employees

Aging of the (active) population bring many challenges, which mainly results from a lack of health. The aim of our study was to test, whether there are differences in sensory-motor trunk functions between younger and older employees. We also tested whether work influence them differently. Fifty (30 younger (30,5 ± 3,3 years) and 20 older (55,0 ± 3,8 years)) healthy employees was tested prior and after work-hours. We measured lumbar range of motion, kinesthetic sense of the trunk, maximal voluntary contraction of trunk extension, endurance of trunk extensors and postural reactions of trunk muscles on expected and unexpected perturbations. We used 2-way ANOVA (group (2) x time (2)). For testing the differences between groups in pre-work test results t-test was applied. The pre-work test results showed lower maximal voluntary contraction and shorter latencies of obliquus externus and internus abdominis on expected perturbations in older employees. Significant effect of work was found in max - imal voluntary contraction and endurance of trunk extensors and the effect of group in latencies of obliquus externus and internus abdominis and erector spi - nae on expected trunk perturbations. There was no effect of interaction group x time. We found that work has a similar effect on sensory-motor trunk functions in younger and older employees (e.g. comparable acute effect), but there were some differences between groups in pre-work results.