Adjustable prosthetic sockets: a systematic review of industrial and research design characteristics and their justifications.

Background: The prosthetic socket is a key component that influences prosthesis satisfaction, with a poorly fitting prosthetic socket linked to prosthesis abandonment and reduced community participation. This paper reviews adjustable socket designs, as they have the potential to improve prosthetic fit and comfort through accommodating residual limb volume fluctuations and alleviating undue socket pressure.

Methods: Systematic literature and patent searches were conducted across multiple databases to identify articles and patents that discussed adjustable prosthetic sockets.

The effect of sex, stature, and limb length on the preferred walk-to-run transition speed.

Background: The preferred walk-to-run transition speed (PTS) for healthy adults is approximately 2 m∙s, however, PTS is influenced by anthropometric factors. Yet despite known sex differences in anthropometrics, studies have reported no sex differences in PTS.

Research Question: Do stature and limb length affect PTS in the same way for both male and female healthy adults?

Methods: Thirty-seven (19 female) non-injured adults volunteered for this study.

Kinematic Characteristics of Male Runners With a History of Recurrent Calf Muscle Strain Injury.

Background: Calf muscle strain injuries are a common running injury affecting male runners and are known to have high reoccurrence rates. Currently, limited evidence exists investigating factors associated with this injury with no previous study investigating the running kinematics of male runners with a history of repeat calf muscle strain injuries.

Purpose: To investigate whether male runners with a history of repeat calf muscle strain injury demonstrate differences in stance phase running kinematics when compared to healthy controls.

The between-day repeatability, standard error of measurement and minimal detectable change for discrete kinematic parameters during treadmill running.

Background: Kinematic parameters of the trunk, pelvis and lower limbs are frequently associated with both running injuries and performance, and the target of clinical interventions. Currently there is limited evidence reporting the between-day repeatability of discrete kinematic parameters of the trunk, pelvis and lower limbs during treadmill running.

Research Question: What is the between-day repeatability, standard error of measurement and minimal detectable change of discrete kinematic parameters of the trunk, pelvis and lower limbs during treadmill running?

Methods: 16 healthy participants attended two kinematic data collection sessions two weeks apart.

Role of sex and stature on the biomechanics of normal and loaded walking: implications for injury risk in the military.

Load carriage and marching 'in-step' are routine military activities associated with lower limb injury risk in service personnel. The fixed pace and stride length of marching typically vary from the walking gait and may result in overstriding. Overstriding increases ground reaction forces and muscle forces.

Using the spring-mass model for running: Force-length curves and foot-strike patterns.

Background: The spring-mass model is commonly used to investigate the mechanical characteristics of human running. Underlying this model is the assumption of a linear force-length relationship, during the stance phase of running, and the idea that stiffness can be characterised using a single spring constant. However, it remains unclear whether the assumption of linearity is valid across different running styles.

Let's take the dog for a gait….

Background: In 1872, Eadweard Muybridge was hired to research unsupported transit in horses, i.e. the trot and the gallop.

A 10% Increase in Step Rate Improves Running Kinematics and Clinical Outcomes in Runners With Patellofemoral Pain at 4 Weeks and 3 Months.

Background: Aberrant frontal-plane hip and pelvis kinematics have been frequently observed in runners with patellofemoral pain (PFP). Gait retaining interventions have been shown to improve running kinematics and may therefore be beneficial in runners with PFP.

Purpose: To investigate whether a 10% increase in the running step rate influences frontal-plane kinematics of the hip and pelvis as well as clinical outcomes in runners with PFP.

Are the arms and head required to accurately estimate centre of mass motion during running?

Accurate measurement of centre of mass (CoM) motion can provide valuable insight into the biomechanics of human running. However, full-body kinematic measurement protocols can be time consuming and difficult to implement. Therefore, this study was performed to understand whether CoM motion during running could be estimated from a model incorporating only lower extremity, pelvic and trunk segments.