Objectives: To determine (1) the forces and moments passing through knee-ankle-foot orthoses (KAFOs) during walking and (2) the accuracy with which these loads can be measured using conventional gait analysis techniques.
Design: Comparative case series.
Setting: Rehabilitation facility with human movement laboratory (gait lab).
Participants: Four patients with poliomyelitis wearing KAFOs.
Interventions: KAFOs were instrumented with a load cell, and walking data were concurrently collected using conventional gait analysis.
Main Outcome Measures: Load measurements and gait parameters.
Results: Predominant orthotic loads (knee joint forces and moments) were composed of knee flexion moments and axial compression forces. With conventional gait analysis, peak knee joint moments were substantially underestimated compared with those directly measured using the load cell. Defining the knee axis anatomically versus at the orthotic axis, tracking it dynamically, and compensating for each patient's corrected knee flexion contracture resulted in considerable improvements in the gait lab estimates of knee joint moments.
Conclusions: A practical method that directly measures moments and forces in conventional KAFOs has been applied to show that conventional gait analysis techniques substantially underestimate knee joint moments in the KAFOs of persons with poliomyelitis. Underestimation of orthotic loads could result in underdesigned orthotic components and ultimately higher incidence of component failure in clinical applications.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2007.11.045 | DOI Listing |
Top Stroke Rehabil
January 2025
Institut d'Investigació Biomèdica Sant Pau (IIB Sant Pau), Barcelona, Spain.
Background: The core is important in providing local strength and balance and is central to almost all kinetic chains of daily activities.
Objective: This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of additional Core Stability Exercises (CSE) to conventional physiotherapy (CP) versus CP alone to improve dynamic sitting balance, coordination, trunk function, and stepping (gait) as a primary outcome and functional sitting balance, postural control, standing balance and fall risk, lower limb spasticity, activities of daily living, degree of disability, and quality of life for early subacute stroke recovery.
Methods: A multicentre parallel, randomized, controlled, assessor-blinded trial was conducted.
Front Med Technol
December 2024
Institute of Systems and Information Engineering, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan.
Introduction: The wearable cyborg Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL) is a therapeutic exoskeletal device that provides voluntary gait assistance using kinematic/kinetic gait data and bioelectrical signals. By utilizing the gait data automatically measured by HAL, we are developing a system to analyze the wearer's gait during the intervention, unlike conventional evaluations that compare pre- and post-treatment gait test results. Despite the potential use of the gait data from the HAL's sensor information, there is still a lack of analysis using such gait data and knowledge of gait patterns during HAL use.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBMC Musculoskelet Disord
December 2024
Sports Medicine Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
Background: Traditional examinations of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries focus primarily on static assessments and lack the ability to evaluate dynamic knee stability. Hence, a dynamic scoring system for knee function is needed in clinical settings. This study aimed to propose a dynamic scoring system based on a large sample of normative six-degree-of-freedom (6-DOF) knee kinematics during gait, and validate its correlation with conventional outcome measurements in assessing ACL-injured knees.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFProsthet Orthot Int
December 2024
Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Faculty of Health Sciences, Gazi University, Ankara, Turkey.
Background: The dynamic elastomeric fabric orthoses (DEFOs) are made of neoprene material, providing the right biomechanical alignment and afferent input in the trunk, pelvis, and extremities, potentially allowing individuals to actively participate in daily life.
Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of DEFOs applied to the lower trunk and pelvis, on balance, gait parameters, and pelvic symmetry in children with cerebral palsy (CP).
Study Design: An evaluator-blinded randomized controlled trial.
J Neuroeng Rehabil
December 2024
Department of Neurology, Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Objective: Cognitive-motor dual-tasking training (CMDT) might improve limb function and motor performance in stroke patients. However, is there enough evidence to prove that it is more effective compared with conventional physical single-task training? This meta-analysis and Trial Sequential Analysis of randomized clinical trials (RCTs) aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of CMDT on balance and gait for treating hemiplegic stroke patients.
Methods: The databases were searched in PubMed, Web of Science, Ovid Database and The Cochrane Library, SinoMed database, Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wan Fang database, and VIP database up to December 8, 2023.
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