AIM To analyse ground reaction forces at higher speeds using another method to be more sensitive in assessing significant gait abnormalities. METHODS A total of 44 subjects, consisting of 24 knee osteoarthritis(OA) pa...AIM To analyse ground reaction forces at higher speeds using another method to be more sensitive in assessing significant gait abnormalities. METHODS A total of 44 subjects, consisting of 24 knee osteoarthritis(OA) patients and 20 healthy controls were analysed. The knee OA patients were recruited from an orthopaedic clinic that were awaiting knee replacement. All subjects had their gait patterns during stance phase at top walking speed assessed on a validated treadmill instrumented with tandem force plates. Temporal measurements and ground reaction forces(GRFs) along with a novel impulse technique were collected for both limbs and a symmetry ratio was applied to all variables to assess inter-limb asymmetry. All continuous variables for each group were compared using a student t-test and χ2 analysis for categorical variables with significance set at α = 0.05. Receiver operator characteristics curves were utilised to determine best discriminating ability.RESULTS The knee OA patients were older(66 ± 7 years vs 53 ± 9 years, P = 0.01) and heavier(body mass index: 31 ± 6 vs 23 ± 7, P < 0.001) but had a similar gender ratio when compared to the control group. Knee OA patients were predictably slower at top walking speed(1.37 ± 0.23 m/s vs 2.00 ± 0.20 m/s, P < 0.0001) with shorter mean step length(79 ± 12 cm vs 99 ± 8 cm, P < 0.0001) and broader gait width(14 ± 5 cm vs 11 ± 3 cm, P = 0.015) than controls without any known lower-limb joint disease. At a matched mean speed(1.37 ± 0.23 vs 1.34 ± 0.07), ground reaction results revealed that pushoff forces and impulse were significantly(P < 0.0001) worse(18% and 12% respectively) for the knee OA patients when compared to the controls. Receiver operating characteristic curves analysis demonstrated total impulse to be the best discriminator of asymmetry, with an area under the curve of 0.902, with a cut-off of-3% and a specificity of 95% and sensitivity of 88%.CONCLUSION Abnormal GRFs in knee osteoarthritis are clearly evident at higher speeds. Analysing GRFs wi展开更多
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an unpredictable disease of the central nervous system that can range from relatively benign to somewhat disabling to devastating, as communication between the brain and other parts of the b...Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an unpredictable disease of the central nervous system that can range from relatively benign to somewhat disabling to devastating, as communication between the brain and other parts of the body is disrupted. Scientists have learned a great deal about MS in recent years;yet still, its cause remains elusive. This paper intends to investigate the hypothesis that gait dynamics have meaning and may be useful in providing insight into the neural control of locomotion. It further seeks to explore the mutual interactions and influences of MS functions on gait, and vice versa, in a quantitative and robust fashion. Ground reaction forces (GRFs), muscle activities, and segmental accelerations within a gait cycle were analyzed in this study. Patterns of the signals from six relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients were compared with the healthy subjects. This quantitative gait analysis aids to illuminate a better understanding of the mobility-related disease such as RRMS characteristics. An outcome of this study is a reproducible methodology for helping therapists make reliable and differentiable diagnosis, design a tailored therapeutic strategy, and comfortably evaluate the follow-ups on patient’s functional recovery.展开更多
文摘AIM To analyse ground reaction forces at higher speeds using another method to be more sensitive in assessing significant gait abnormalities. METHODS A total of 44 subjects, consisting of 24 knee osteoarthritis(OA) patients and 20 healthy controls were analysed. The knee OA patients were recruited from an orthopaedic clinic that were awaiting knee replacement. All subjects had their gait patterns during stance phase at top walking speed assessed on a validated treadmill instrumented with tandem force plates. Temporal measurements and ground reaction forces(GRFs) along with a novel impulse technique were collected for both limbs and a symmetry ratio was applied to all variables to assess inter-limb asymmetry. All continuous variables for each group were compared using a student t-test and χ2 analysis for categorical variables with significance set at α = 0.05. Receiver operator characteristics curves were utilised to determine best discriminating ability.RESULTS The knee OA patients were older(66 ± 7 years vs 53 ± 9 years, P = 0.01) and heavier(body mass index: 31 ± 6 vs 23 ± 7, P < 0.001) but had a similar gender ratio when compared to the control group. Knee OA patients were predictably slower at top walking speed(1.37 ± 0.23 m/s vs 2.00 ± 0.20 m/s, P < 0.0001) with shorter mean step length(79 ± 12 cm vs 99 ± 8 cm, P < 0.0001) and broader gait width(14 ± 5 cm vs 11 ± 3 cm, P = 0.015) than controls without any known lower-limb joint disease. At a matched mean speed(1.37 ± 0.23 vs 1.34 ± 0.07), ground reaction results revealed that pushoff forces and impulse were significantly(P < 0.0001) worse(18% and 12% respectively) for the knee OA patients when compared to the controls. Receiver operating characteristic curves analysis demonstrated total impulse to be the best discriminator of asymmetry, with an area under the curve of 0.902, with a cut-off of-3% and a specificity of 95% and sensitivity of 88%.CONCLUSION Abnormal GRFs in knee osteoarthritis are clearly evident at higher speeds. Analysing GRFs wi
文摘Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an unpredictable disease of the central nervous system that can range from relatively benign to somewhat disabling to devastating, as communication between the brain and other parts of the body is disrupted. Scientists have learned a great deal about MS in recent years;yet still, its cause remains elusive. This paper intends to investigate the hypothesis that gait dynamics have meaning and may be useful in providing insight into the neural control of locomotion. It further seeks to explore the mutual interactions and influences of MS functions on gait, and vice versa, in a quantitative and robust fashion. Ground reaction forces (GRFs), muscle activities, and segmental accelerations within a gait cycle were analyzed in this study. Patterns of the signals from six relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients were compared with the healthy subjects. This quantitative gait analysis aids to illuminate a better understanding of the mobility-related disease such as RRMS characteristics. An outcome of this study is a reproducible methodology for helping therapists make reliable and differentiable diagnosis, design a tailored therapeutic strategy, and comfortably evaluate the follow-ups on patient’s functional recovery.
