scholarly journals MULTI-SEGMENTED TRUNK MOTION OF HEALTHY NON-ELDERLY ADULTS IN DIFFERENT DECADES OF LIFE

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (04) ◽  
pp. 1750028
Author(s):  
Scott P. Breloff ◽  
Li-Shan Chou

Traditionally, gait analysis models the trunk as one rigid body segment. This approach has limitations; it does not capture all the movements of this area of the body throughout locomotion. Lower-extremity-gait kinematics do not routinely change in healthy non-elderly adults in different decades of life; however, it is unknown if trunk kinematics will be altered during different activities of daily living as a function of age. The purpose of this study was to determine if a previously validated multi-segmented trunk model would detect trunk movement variations in non-elderly healthy adults in different decades of life. Thirty-four non-elderly healthy adults in various decades of life (20–29 years, 30–39 years, 40–49 years, and 50–59 years) completed two tasks of ambulatory daily living (level walking and stair descent). Trunk maximum angle during the gait cycle, timing of the trunk maximum angle during the gait cycle and trunk range of motion were examined using analysis of variance procedures. Findings are that age group did not affect the trunk kinematics of individuals in different decades of life, but that may not represent the experiences of elderly individuals.

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adnil W. Titus ◽  
Susan Hillier ◽  
Quinette A. Louw ◽  
Gakeemah Inglis-Jassiem

Background: Approximately two out of three people with stroke experience gait problems. Trunk movement control and symmetry is an important prerequisite for functional walking gait. Movement control, measured objectively as kinematics during walking gait, is rarely investigated.Objective: To describe the three-dimensional (3D) kinematics of the trunk during gait in people with stroke, including key spatiotemporal characteristics.Methodology: A total of 17 adults with stroke who met the inclusion criteria were selected to participate in this cross-sectional pilot study. An eight-camera T-10 Vicon system with Nexus 1.8 software (Vicon Motion System Limited, Oxford, UK) was used to analyse the 3D kinematics of the trunk during self-selected walking speed. Trunk kinematics throughout the gait cycle and spatiotemporal parameters were extracted using custom-built scripts in MATLAB used at the Stellenbosch University Movement Analysis Laboratory. Stata Version 12.1 software was used to assess differences in trunk kinematics between the affected and unaffected sides during gait using the Sign test (statistical significance level p  0.05).Results: Participants achieved functional gait speeds although they presented with asymmetrical trunk kinematics. During the full gait cycle, there were statistically significant differences of trunk motion between the affected and unaffected sides in the coronal plane (p  0.001). There were statistically significant differences in the trunk kinematics between the affected side and unaffected sides at initial contact (p  0.001) and foot off (p  0.049) in the coronal plane as well as at initial contact (p  0.000) and foot off (p  0.013) in the transverse plane.Conclusion: This pilot study found significant asymmetry in trunk motion between the affected and unaffected sides that varied across the gait cycle. This suggests the trunk may need to be targeted in clinical gait retraining post-stroke.


2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
A. G. Dunning ◽  
M. M. H. P. Janssen ◽  
P. N. Kooren ◽  
J. L. Herder

Due to progressive muscle weakness, the arm function in boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) reduces. An arm support can compensate for this loss of function. Existing arm supports are wheelchair bound, which restricts the ability to perform trunk movements. To evaluate the function of a body-bound arm support, a prototype (based on the Wilmington robotic exoskeleton (WREX) arm support) that allows trunk movements was built. In order to examine the effect of this device and to compare it with an existing wheelchair-bound device, three healthy subjects performed single joint movements (SJMs) and activities of daily living (ADL) with and without the devices. The range of motion (RoM) of the arm and the surface electromyography (sEMG) signal of five different arm muscles were measured. The range of motion increased when compared to the wheelchair-bound device, and the trunk motion was perceived as important to make specific movements easier and more natural, especially the more extreme movements like reaching for a far object and reaching to the top of the head. The sEMG signal was comparable to that of the wheelchair-bound device. This means that an arm support with trunk motion capability can increase the range of motion of the user, while the amount of support to the arm is equal.


2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Ohlendorf ◽  
K. Kerth ◽  
W. Osiander ◽  
F. Holzgreve ◽  
L. Fraeulin ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The aim of this study was to collect standard reference values of the weight and the maximum pressure distribution in healthy adults aged 18–65 years and to investigate the influence of constitutional parameters on it. Methods A total of 416 healthy subjects (208 male / 208 female) aged between 18 and 65 years (Ø 38.3 ± 14.1 years) participated in this study, conducted 2015–2019 in Heidelberg. The age-specific evaluation is based on 4 age groups (G1, 18–30 years; G2, 31–40 years; G3, 41–50 years; G4, 51–65 years). A pressure measuring plate FDM-S (Zebris/Isny/Germany) was used to collect body weight distribution and maximum pressure distribution of the right and left foot and left and right forefoot/rearfoot, respectively. Results Body weight distribution of the left (50.07%) and right (50.12%) foot was balanced. There was higher load on the rearfoot (left 54.14%; right 55.09%) than on the forefoot (left 45.49%; right 44.26%). The pressure in the rearfoot was higher than in the forefoot (rearfoot left 9.60 N/cm2, rearfoot right 9.51 N/cm2/forefoot left 8.23 N/cm2, forefoot right 8.59 N/cm2). With increasing age, the load in the left foot shifted from the rearfoot to the forefoot as well as the maximum pressure (p ≤ 0.02 and 0.03; poor effect size). With increasing BMI, the body weight shifted to the left and right rearfoot (p ≤ 0.001, poor effect size). As BMI increased, so did the maximum pressure in all areas (p ≤ 0.001 and 0.03, weak to moderate effect size). There were significant differences in weight and maximum pressure distribution in the forefoot and rearfoot in the different age groups, especially between younger (18–40 years) and older (41–65 years) subjects. Discussion Healthy individuals aged from 18 to 65 years were found to have a balanced weight distribution in an aspect ratio, with a 20% greater load of the rearfoot. Age and BMI were found to be influencing factors of the weight and maximum pressure distribution, especially between younger and elder subjects. The collected standard reference values allow comparisons with other studies and can serve as a guideline in clinical practice and scientific studies.


Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (22) ◽  
pp. 7497
Author(s):  
Roy T. Shahar ◽  
Maayan Agmon

Spatio-temporal parameters of human gait, currently measured using different methods, provide valuable information on health. Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) are one such method of gait analysis, with smartphone IMUs serving as a good substitute for current gold-standard techniques. Here we investigate the concurrent validity of a smartphone placed in a front-facing pocket to perform gait analysis. Sixty community-dwelling healthy adults equipped with a smartphone and an application for gait analysis completed a 2-min walk on a marked path. Concurrent validity was assessed against an APDM mobility lab (APDM Inc.; Portland, OR, USA). Bland–Altman plots and intraclass correlation coefficients (agreement and consistency) for gait speed, cadence, and step length indicate good to excellent agreement (ICC2,1 > 0.8). For right leg stance and swing % of gait cycle and double support % of gait cycle, results were moderate (0.52 < ICC2,1 < 0.62). For left leg stance and swing % of gait cycle left results show poor agreement (ICC2,1 < 0.5). Consistency of results was good to excellent for all tested parameters (ICC3,1 > 0.8). Thus we have a valid and reliable instrument for measuring healthy adults’ spatio-temporal gait parameters in a controlled walking environment.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoshiaki Kataoka ◽  
Tomohiro Shimizu ◽  
Ryo Takeda ◽  
Shigeru Tadano ◽  
Yuki Saito ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Hip osteoarthritis (OA) is a musculoskeletal condition that makes walking difficult due to pain induced by weight-bearing activities. Treadmills that support the body weight (BW) reduce the load on the lower limbs, and those equipped with a lower-body positive-pressure (LBPP) device, developed as a new method for unweighting, significantly reduce pain in patients with knee OA. However, the effects of unweighting on gait kinematics remain unclear in patients with hip OA. Therefore, we investigated the effects of unweighting on kinematics in patients with hip OA during walking on a treadmill equipped with an LBPP device. Methods: A total of 15 women with hip OA and 15 age-matched female controls wore a three-dimensional (3-D) motion analysis system and walked at a self-selected speed on the LBPP treadmill. Data regarding self-reported hip pain using a numeric rating scale (NRS) in which the scores 0 and 10 represented no pain and the worst pain, respectively, under three different BW conditions (100%, 75%, and 50%) were collected. Moreover, 3-D peak joint angles during gait under each condition were calculated and compared. Results: In the hip OA group, the NRS pain scores at 50% and 75% BW conditions significantly decreased compared with that at 100% BW condition (50%, P=0.002; 75%, P=0.026), and the peak hip extension angle decreased compared with that in the healthy controls (P=0.044). In both groups, unweighting significantly decreased the peak hip (P<0.001) and knee (P<0.001) flexion angles and increased the peak ankle plantar flexion angle (P<0.001) during walking. Conclusions: Unweighting by the LBPP treadmill decreased pain in the hip OA group but did not drastically alter the gait kinematics compared with that in the control group. Therefore, regarding the use of the LBPP treadmill for patients with hip OA, clinicians should consider the benefits of pain reduction rather than the kinematic changes.


1993 ◽  
Vol 185 (1) ◽  
pp. 179-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. E. Fish

The power output and propulsive efficiency of swimming bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) were determined from a hydromechanical model. The propulsive movements were filmed as dolphins swam in large pools. Dolphins swam at velocities of 1.2-6.0 m s-1. Propulsion was provided by dorsoventral oscillations of the posterior body and flukes. The maximum angle of attack of the flukes showed a linear decrease with velocity, whereas the frequency of the propulsive cycle increased linearly with increasing velocity. Amplitude was 20 % of body length and remained constant with velocity. Propulsive efficiency was 0.81. The thrust power computed was within physiological limits. After correction for effects due to swimming depth, the coefficient of drag was found to be 3.2 times higher than the theoretical minimum assuming turbulent boundary conditions. The motions of the body and flukes are primarily responsible for the increased drag. This analysis supports other studies that indicate that bottlenose dolphins, although well adapted for efficient high- performance swimming, show no unusual hydrodynamic performance.


2008 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurent Frossard ◽  
Nathan Stevenson ◽  
James Smeathers ◽  
Eva Häggström ◽  
Kerstin Hagberg ◽  
...  

This study aimed to provide a description of the continuous recording of the true load regime experienced during daily living by the abutment of a trans-femoral amputee fitted with an osseointegrated fixation. The specific objectives: (i) To present an apparatus and a procedure allowing recording of the load regime, and (ii) an example of the raw data and six performance indicators of the usage of the prosthesis obtained with this method. A subject was monitored for a period of 5 hours as he went about his daily activities. The load regime was directly measured and recorded using a commercial transducer and data logger. The overall load profile presented alternative periods of variable length of inactivity (64%) and activity (36%), respectively. The maximum load applied on the mediolateral, anteroposterior and the long axes represented 21%, 21% and 120% of the body weight, respectively. The anteroposterior, mediolateral and long components of the impulse were 395 kN.s, 359 kN.s and 2,323 kN.s, respectively. The amputee generated a total of 2312 gait cycles of the prosthetic leg, giving an approximate overall cadence of 8 stride/min. Preliminary outcomes indicated that the proposed method was an improvement on the current techniques as it provided the true loading and actual usage of the prosthesis during daily living. This study is a stepping stone in the development of future affordable, on-board and user-friendly load recording systems that can be used in evidence-based practice.


2018 ◽  
Vol 64 ◽  
pp. 114-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lynsey Northeast ◽  
Charlotte N. Gautrey ◽  
Lindsay Bottoms ◽  
Gerwyn Hughes ◽  
Andrew C.S. Mitchell ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
pp. 111-132
Author(s):  
Richard P. McQuellon

Nell describes a very disruptive, boundary-violating visit from a nurse caregiver who interrupted a visit from a dear friend. She had a helpful discussion with the hospice chaplain, who tells her of God’s promise: You will not be alone at the end. It greatly comforts her. Being homebound has increased her sense of isolation and fear that she will die alone. She is managing her physical symptoms (i.e., shortness of breath and pain) as her body deteriorates. The tasks of daily living such as eating and toileting now take much of her time. I want to be useful to her since I have accompanied others on this road and seen bad deaths unfold as the body deteriorates. I want to help Nell avoid a painful death. She begins our conversation by describing the relief she experiences at night in dreams where she does not feel trapped in her bed. I am delighted to hear of her dream travels and to learn that our meetings are a welcome distraction from the fear that accompanies the slow deterioration of her body. I’m pleased that even when the topic is mortality, our conversations can be healing and surprised she describes them as fun.


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