Cross-sectional analysis of speed-up mechanism in normal gait among healthy older adults with and without falls - Results from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

Background: Falls in older adults increase the risk of mobility loss. Proper understanding of gait mechanisms related to falls may provide novel solutions for maintaining mobility in older adults.

Research Question: Identify fall-related gait patterns through analyzing alterations in gait parameters to walk faster than usual pace in older adults.

Investigating balance-related gait patterns and their relationship with maximum torques generated by the hamstrings and quadriceps in older adults - Results from the Baltimore longitudinal study of aging.

Background: Balance-related gait patterns in older adults can be objectively discerned through the examination of gait parameters, maximum leg torques, and their interconnections.

Objective: To investigate the correlation between leg muscle strength and balance during gait concerning functional performance in healthy older adults.

Methods: Participants included 117 adults aged 60-95 years were recruited from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA).

Predicting stroke, neurological and movement disorders using single and dual-task gait in Korean older population.

Background: Single and motor or cognitive dual-gait analysis is often used in clinical settings to evaluate older adults affected by neurological and movement disorders or with a stroke history. Gait features are frequently investigated using Machine Learning (ML) with significant results that can help clinicians in diagnosis and rehabilitation. The present study aims to classify patients with stroke, neurological and movement disorders using ML to analyze gait characteristics and to understand the importance of the single and dual-task features among Korean older adults.

Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Association Between Gait Speed, Ankle Proprioception, and LE Numbness-Results From the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

Mobility declines in older adults can be determined through monitoring longitudinal changes in gait speed. We examined longitudinal changes [in] ankle proprioception among those with and without baseline lower extremity numbness to develop a better understanding of mobility declines in healthy older adults. Participants included 568 adults (52.

Differential associations between dual-task walking abilities and usual gait patterns in healthy older adults-Results from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

Background: It is well established that facing a cognitive challenge while carrying out a motor task interferes with the motor task performance, and in general the ability of handling a dual-task declines progressively with aging. However, the reasons for this decline have not been fully elucidated. Understanding the association between usual-walking gait patterns and dual-task walking performance may provide new insights into the mechanisms that lead to gait deterioration in normal aging and its link to motor and cognitive function.

Differential Gait Patterns by History of Falls and Knee Pain Status in Healthy Older Adults: Results From the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

Consideration of knee pain can be crucial for identifying fall-related gait patterns. While walking, gait parameters at usual speed were examined in persons with different falls and knee pain status. A total of 439 adults aged 60-92 years participated in this study.

Ankle Proprioception-Associated Gait Patterns in Older Adults: Results from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

Introduction: Ankle proprioception training has been found to improve balance-related gait disorders; however, the relationship between ankle proprioception and specific gait patterns in older adults with and without impaired balance has not been systematically examined.

Methods: This study characterizes gait patterns of 230 older adults age 60-95 yr evaluated in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging gait laboratory with (n = 82) and without impaired balance (inability to successfully complete a narrow walk) and examines ankle proprioception performance.

Results: Participants with impaired balance had a higher angle threshold for perceiving ankle movement than those without impaired balance even after controlling for the substantial age difference between groups (P = 0.

Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Associations Between Adiposity and Walking Endurance in Adults Age 60-79.

Background: The impact of excess weight on current and future walking endurance in nondisabled persons is unclear. This study examines the association between obesity and walking endurance among nondisabled persons both in late mid-life and early old age.

Methods: Participants in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging aged 60-79 years (n = 406) who reported no walking limitations, and completed a 400-meter walk "as quickly as possible" without lower-extremity pain, and had a follow-up assessment within 1.

Gait energetic efficiency in older adults with and without knee pain: results from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

With aging, customary gait patterns change and energetic efficiency declines, but the relationship between these alterations is not well understood. If gait characteristics that develop with aging explain part of the decline in energetic efficiency that occur in most aging individuals, then efforts to modify these characteristics could delay or prevent mobility limitation. This study characterizes gait patterns in older persons with and without knee pain and tests the hypothesis that changes in gait characteristics due to knee pain are associated with increased energetic cost of walking in older adults.

Gait characteristics associated with walking speed decline in older adults: results from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

Background: Understanding the mechanisms that contribute to walking speed decline can provide needed insight for developing targeted interventions to reduce the rate and likelihood of decline.

Objective: Examine the association between gait characteristics and walking speed decline in older adults.

Methods: Participants in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging aged 60 to 89 were evaluated in the gait laboratory which used a three dimensional motion capture system and force platforms to assess cadence, stride length, stride width, percent of gait cycle in double stance, anterior-posterior mechanical work expenditure (MWE), and medial-lateral MWE.

Age-associated gait patterns and the role of lower extremity strength - results from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

The aim of the present study was to examine differences in gait characteristics across the adult lifespan and to test the hypothesis that such differences are attributable at least in part to the decline in muscle strength. The data presented here are from 190 participants of the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA) aged from 32 to 93 years. Based on two age thresholds that best capture the effect of age on walking speed, participants were divided into three age groups: middle-age (32-57 years; N=27), old-age (58-78 years; N=125), and oldest-age (79-93 years; N=38).

Gait pattern alterations in older adults associated with type 2 diabetes in the absence of peripheral neuropathy--results from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

Diabetes may impact gait mechanics before onset of frank neuropathies and other associated threats to mobility. This study aims to characterize gait pattern alterations of type 2 diabetic adults without peripheral neuropathy during walking at maximum speed (fast-walking) as well as at self-selected speed (usual-walking). One-hundred and eighty-six participants aged 60-87 from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA) able to walk unassisted and without peripheral neuropathy were classified as non-diabetic (N=160) or having type 2 diabetes (N=26).

Sex-specific differences in gait patterns of healthy older adults: results from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

The effects of normal aging and orthopedic conditions on gait patterns during customary walking have been extensively investigated. Empirical evidence supports the notion that sex differences exist in the gait patterns of young adults but it is unclear as to whether sex differences exist in older adults. The aim of this study was to investigate sex-specific differences in gait among older adults.

Gait patterns during different walking conditions in older adults with and without knee osteoarthritis--results from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

Biomechanical analysis of lower extremity activities while walking at different speeds and in challenging conditions may help to identify specific gait patterns associated with knee osteoarthritis (knee-OA). We hypothesized that individuals with asymptomatic knee-OA have lower ankle activity, while individuals with symptomatic knee-OA have similar or higher ankle activity compared to individuals without knee-OA, and that such differences are enhanced during challenging gait tasks. We tested this hypothesis by examining gait characteristics in multiple gait tasks using data from 153 Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA) participants (112 without knee-OA, 41 with knee-OA; 53-87 years, 52% women).

Age-associated differences in the gait pattern changes of older adults during fast-speed and fatigue conditions: results from the Baltimore longitudinal study of ageing.

Objective: the present study investigated the effects of walking under different challenges and kinematics and kinetics generated during these activities and how these vary with age. We hypothesised that age-associated changes in gait speed and kinetics are more pronounced during fast-speed walking and post-activity walking, compared with usual-speed walking.

Methods: investigated walking under three conditions: (i) usual speed, (ii) fast speed and (iii) post-activity in 183 Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging participants (mean 73 ± 9 years) who could walk unassisted.

Characteristic gait patterns in older adults with obesity--results from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

Obesity in older adults is a growing public health problem. Excess weight causes biomechanical burden to lower extremity joints and contribute to joint pathology. The aim of this study was to identify specific characteristics of gait associated with body mass index (BMI).

Age-related mechanical work expenditure during normal walking: the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

The aim of this cross-sectional study was to delineate age-associated kinematic and kinetic gait patterns of normal walking, and to test the hypothesis that older adults exhibit gait patterns that reduce generative mechanical work expenditures (MWEs). We studied 52 adult Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging participants (means age 72+/-9, from 60 to 92 years) who could walk 4m unaided. Three-dimensional kinematic and kinetic parameters assessed during rotation-defined gait periods were used to estimate MWEs for the rotation of lower extremities about the medial-lateral (ML) and anterior-posterior (AP) axes of proximal joints, which represent MWEs in the AP and ML sides, respectively.

Stride width discriminates gait of side-fallers compared to other-directed fallers during overground walking.

Purpose: The purpose was to identify differences in gait characteristics between older fallers with a tendency to fall sideways compared to those who do not fall to the side.

Method: The authors conducted a prospective, case control study of ambulatory adults older than 70 residing in retirement communities. Measurements included spatial and temporal gait parameters and prospective fall surveillance.