The purpose of this study is to determine the function of the lower extremities of renal failure patients who regularly have in-center hemodialysis. Studied were 49 subjects consisting of 30 men (mean age 67.9±5.6y) and 19 women (mean age 68.0±6.5y). Evaluated were the time and number of steps required to walk 10 meters as fast as possible and the maximal step length corrected for the length of the lower limb. In addition, maximal time that patients maintained an upright standing position upon one leg with the eyes open, BMI, waist-hip ratio, and serum levels of total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol were evaluated. According to the reference book of Tentou-yobou-kyoushitsu edited by The Laboratory of Physical Education and Medicine (Nagano), the times required to walk 10 meters were 5.4±1.0 and 5.7±0.9 s, respectively, in healthy 65- to 69-year-old men and women. These values were nearly 2 s lower than the corresponding values in the hemodialysis patients (7.9±2.3 s in men and 8.1±2.0 s in women). Values of the step length index were 137.4 (18.6%) and 127.2 (14.9%), respectively, in healthy men and women, whereas corresponding values in the patient groups were 99.7 (25.4%) in men and 104.5 (22.9%) in women. These findings suggest that the subjects on hemodialysis had inferior function of the lower extremities in comparison with the healthy elderly.
