Reference Values of the Forearm Tremor Power Spectra for Youth Athletes

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine reference graphs of power spectral density functions of forearm physiological tremor and to compare their parameters in the male and female population of young athletes from various sports. One hundred fifty-nine (159) female (15.7 ± 2.1 years, 59.8 ± 8.1 kg, 169.1 ± 7.5 cm) and 276 male (16.4 ± 1.9 years 72.7 ± 10.3 kg and 180.9 ± 8.7 cm) youth athletes participated in the study. Forearm tremor was measured accelerometrically in a sitting position. Power spectrum density (PSD) function was calculated for each individual tremor waveform. Because of right skewness of power distribution, the PSD functions were subjected to logarithmic transformation. Average log-powers in low (2–4 Hz) and high (8–14 Hz) frequency ranges and mean frequencies in those ranges were analyzed. Tremor log-powers for male were greater than for female athletes (p < 0.001), while frequencies of spectrum maxima did not differ from each other. Frequencies of spectrum maxima correlated (p < 0.001) with age (r = 0.277 and 0.326 for males and females, respectively). The obtained reference functions may be utilized in order to quantify and assess tremor size and its changes evoked by stress and fatigue, which can be applied for selection and training monitoring in sports, but also in medicine for detection and diagnosis of pathologic tremor in young individuals.