Abstract
To contribute to the progress of“health promotion”, both the secular trend of physical fitness and the orthopedic diseases (such as bone, joint, and muscle disorders) have been investigated, in middle-aged subjects of Multiphasic Health Testing and Services (MHTS) in Toma General Hospital.
The following findings were obtained :
1. Comparing the results of physical-strength checkups in 1989 with that in 1998, among subjects (over-night) aged 30 through 39, subjects in 1998 were taller, heavier, higher proportion of body fat, and lower intake of oxygen.
2. Although frequency of sport injury patients aged 30 or more in Toma Hospital orthopedics department have declined with age, we should not underestimate the risk of sport injury among middle-aged subjects.
3. The Shöber test which evaluated flexibility of subjects was useful to motivate the prevention of lumbago.
4. We take in the criteria of CXD (computer assisted X-ray densitometry) for screening the high risk subjects for future vertebra fractures ; that is, CXD-measured metacarpal bone mineral density (m-BMD) <2.0 or CXD-measured radial bone mineral density (r-BMD) <2.4.
5. The following items of physical-strength checkups have significant correlations with fall (p<0.05) : muscular strength around knee, stride index, duration of stand on one foot with eyes shut, anteflexio value with long sitting position. We take into account these items to develop physical exercise for fall prevention.
These findings will provide important clues that may prevent orthopedic diseases and may prolong disability-free life years.
