Gait Biomechanics and Patient-Reported Function as Predictors of Response to a Hip Strengthening Exercise Intervention in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis.

Objective: Muscle strengthening exercises have been shown to improve pain and function in adults with mild-to-moderate knee osteoarthritis, but individual response rates can vary greatly. Predicting individuals who respond and those who do not is important in developing a more efficient and effective model of care for knee osteoarthritis (OA). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to use pre-intervention gait kinematics and patient-reported outcome measures to predict post-intervention response to a 6-week hip strengthening exercise intervention in patients with mild-to-moderate knee OA.

Do intermediate- and higher-order principal components contain useful information to detect subtle changes in lower extremity biomechanics during running?

Recently, a principal component analysis (PCA) approach has been used to provide insight into running pathomechanics. However, researchers often account for nearly all of the variance from the original data using only the first few, or lower-order principal components (PCs), which are often associated with the most dominant movement patterns. In contrast, intermediate- and higher-order PCs are generally associated with subtle movement patterns and may contain valuable information about between-group variation and specific test conditions.

Gender differences in gait kinematics in runners with iliotibial band syndrome.

Atypical running gait biomechanics are considered a primary factor in the etiology of iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS). However, a general consensus on the underpinning kinematic differences between runners with and without ITBS is yet to be reached. This lack of consensus may be due in part to three issues: gender differences in gait mechanics, the preselection of discrete biomechanical variables, and/or relatively small sample sizes.

The effect of the addition of hip strengthening exercises to a lumbopelvic exercise programme for the treatment of non-specific low back pain: A randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: To compare the efficacy of two exercise programmes in reducing pain and disability for individuals with non-specific low back pain and to examine the underlying mechanical factors related to pain and disability for individuals with NSLBP.

Design: A single-blind, randomized controlled trial.

Methods: Eighty participants were recruited from eleven community-based general medical practices and randomized into two groups completing either a lumbopelvic motor control or a combined lumbopelvic motor control and progressive hip strengthening exercise therapy programme.

Gender and age-related differences in bilateral lower extremity mechanics during treadmill running.

Female runners have a two-fold risk of sustaining certain running-related injuries as compared to their male counterparts. Thus, a comprehensive understanding of the sex-related differences in running kinematics is necessary. However, previous studies have either used discrete time point variables and inferential statistics and/or relatively small subject numbers.

Predicting timing of foot strike during running, independent of striking technique, using principal component analysis of joint angles.

As 3-dimensional (3D) motion-capture for clinical gait analysis continues to evolve, new methods must be developed to improve the detection of gait cycle events based on kinematic data. Recently, the application of principal component analysis (PCA) to gait data has shown promise in detecting important biomechanical features. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to define a new foot strike detection method for a continuum of striking techniques, by applying PCA to joint angle waveforms.

Flexibility, muscle strength and running biomechanical adaptations in older runners.

Background: The increased injury risk in older runners has been associated with alterations in muscle strength, flexibility, and gait biomechanics. This study investigated whether older runners exhibit changes in muscle strength, flexibility and running biomechanics compared to younger runners, and possible relationships between these changes.

Methods: Thirty-five young (20-36yrs) and 35 older (55-71yrs) recreational runners participated in the study.

Validation of plantar pressure measurements for a novel in-shoe plantar sensory replacement unit.

Background: Research concerning prevention of diabetic foot complications is critical. A novel in-shoe plantar sensory replacement unit (PSRU) has been developed that provides alert-based feedback derived from analyzing plantar pressure threshold measurements in real time. The purpose of this study was to compare the PSRU device to a gold standard pressure-sensing device (GS-PSD) to determine the correlation between concurrent measures of plantar pressure during walking.

Does tester experience influence the reliability with which 3D gait kinematics are collected in healthy adults?

Objectives: To determine whether tester experience influences the reliability of three-dimensional gait collections.

Design: Reliability study.

Participants: Ten healthy subjects visited a university gait laboratory on two separate days and underwent a walking gait analysis.

Between-limb kinematic asymmetry during gait in unilateral and bilateral mild to moderate knee osteoarthritis.

Objective: To compare lower-limb kinematic asymmetries during gait in individuals with unilateral and bilateral symptomatic osteoarthritis and controls.

Design: Cross-sectional.

Setting: Laboratory.

Steps toward the validation of the Trendelenburg test: the effect of experimentally reduced hip abductor muscle function on frontal plane mechanics.

Objective: To investigate the validity of the Trendelenburg test (TT) using an ultrasound-guided nerve block (UNB) of the superior gluteal nerve and determine whether the reduction in hip abductor muscle (HABD) strength would result in the theorized mechanical compensatory strategies measured during the TT.

Design: Quasi-experimental.

Setting: Hospital.

Support vector machines for detecting age-related changes in running kinematics.

Age-related changes in running kinematics have been reported in the literature using classical inferential statistics. However, this approach has been hampered by the increased number of biomechanical gait variables reported and subsequently the lack of differences presented in these studies. Data mining techniques have been applied in recent biomedical studies to solve this problem using a more general approach.

Normative and critical criteria for iliotibial band and iliopsoas muscle flexibility.

Context: The Ober and Thomas tests are subjective and involve a "negative" or "positive" assessment, making them difficult to apply within the paradigm of evidence-based medicine. No authors have combined the subjective clinical assessment with an objective measurement for these special tests.

Objective: To compare the subjective assessment of iliotibial band and iliopsoas flexibility with the objective measurement of a digital inclinometer, to establish normative values, and to provide an evidence-based critical criterion for determining tissue tightness.

The role of tibialis posterior fatigue on foot kinematics during walking.

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of localised tibialis posterior muscle fatigue on foot kinematics during walking. It was hypothesised that following fatigue, subjects would demonstrate greater forefoot and rearfoot motion during walking. It was also postulated that the magnitude of the change in rearfoot motion would be associated with standing anatomical rearfoot posture.