Effects of age and gender on the movement workspace of the trapeziometacarpal joint

While researchers have suggested that joint mobility would probably be affected by age and gender, research findings often present discrepancies. Little research has been performed on the factors which effect mobility of the trapeziometacarpal (TMC) joint. The purpose of this study was to address the effects of age and gender on the ranges of motion of the normal TMC joint. Eighty normal subjects divided into four age groups participated in this study. The TMC joint motions were recorded using an electromagnetic tracking system. In order to achieve a maximal range of TMC joint motion which was defined as the maximal workspace, each subject was asked to perform actively maximal circumduction, flexion-extension, and abduction-adduction of the TMC joint. Numerical and statistical methods were used to compute the TMC workspace and to detect significant differences. A workspace-to-length ratio was determined as an index to examine the effects of the age and gender on the joint mobility. The results demonstrated that age and gender had significant influences on the TMC workspace among the groups studied. The understanding of TMC joint mobility under different age and gender conditions is achieved through this study. The findings can be used to report clinical measures in the determination of the extent of impairment of osteoarthritis as well as the outcomes between pre- and post-surgical (or non-surgical) interventions.