Measurement strategy and statistical power in studies assessing gait stability and variability in older adults.

Background: Gait variability and stability measures might be useful to assess gait quality changes after fall prevention programs. However, reliability of these measures appears limited.

Aims: The objective of the present study was to assess the effects of measurement strategy in terms of numbers of subjects, measurement days and measurements per day on the power to detect relevant changes in gait variability and stability between conditions among healthy elderly.

Associations between measures of gait stability, leg strength and fear of falling.

Fear of falling (FoF) in elderly frequently leads to decreased quality of life. FoF is suggested to be associated with changes in gait quality and muscle strength with aging. The aim of this study was to determine whether gait quality and maximal voluntary torque (MVT) of knee extensor muscles are associated with FoF.

Effects of unilateral leg muscle fatigue on balance control in perturbed and unperturbed gait in healthy elderly.

This study assessed effects of unilateral leg muscle fatigue (ULMF) on balance control in gait during the stance and swing phases of the fatigued leg in healthy elderly, to test the assumption that leg muscle strength limits balance control during the stance-phase. Ten subjects (aged 63.4, SD 5.

Local dynamic stability and variability of gait are associated with fall history in elderly subjects.

Gait parameters that can be measured with simple instrumentation may hold promise for identifying individuals at risk of falling. Increased variability of gait is associated with increased risk of falling, but research on additional parameters indicates that local dynamic stability (LDS) of gait may also be a predictor of fall risk. The objective of the present study was to assess the association between gait variability, LDS of gait and fall history in a large sample of elderly subjects.