ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Postural abnormalities are common in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and lead to gait abnormalities. Relationships between changes in the trunk posture of PD patients and gait profile score (GPS) and gait spatiotemporal parameters are poorly investigated. The aim of the current study was to investigate the relationships between trunk posture, GPS, and gait spatiotemporal parameters, in patients with PD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-three people with PD and nineteen age-matched healthy people participated in this study. A 3D gait kinematical analysis was applied to all participants using the Plug-In Gait Full BodyTM tool. Trunk and limb kinematics patterns and gait spatio-temporal parameters of patients with PD and the control group were compared. Additionally, correlations between trunk kinematics patterns, gait spatio-temporal parameters, and GPS of the PD group were tested. RESULTS: Cadence, opposite foot off, step time, single support, double support, foot off, gait speed, trunk kinematics, and GPS showed significant differences between the two groups (p ≤ 0.05). Posture of the trunk during gait was not related to the spatio-temporal parameters and gait profile score in the PD group. The trunk flexor pattern influenced GPS domains, mainly of the ankle and the knee. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Flexed posture of the trunk in patients with PD seems to influence both ankle and knee movement patterns during the gait. The GPS analysis provided direct and simplified kinematic information for the PD group. These results may have implications for understanding the importance of considering the positioning of the trunk during gait.
ABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of flooring on barefoot gait according to age and gender. Two groups of healthy subjects were analyzed: the elderly adult group (EA; 10 healthy subjects) and the middle-aged group (MA; 10 healthy subjects). Each participant was asked to walk at his or her preferred speed over two force plates on the following surfaces: 1) homogeneous vinyl (HOV), 2) carpet, 3) heterogeneous vinyl (HTV) and 4) mixed (in which the first half of the pathway was covered by HOV and the second by HTV). Two force plates (Kistler 9286BA) embedded in the data collection room floor measured the ground reaction forces and friction. The required coefficient of friction (RCOF) was analyzed. For the statistical analysis, a linear mixed-effects model for repeated measures was performed. During barefoot gait, there were differences in the RCOF among the flooring types during the heel contact and toe-off phases. Due to better plantar proprioception during barefoot gait, the EA and MA subjects were able to distinguish differences among the flooring types. Moreover, when the EA were compared with the MA subjects, differences could be observed in the RCOF during the toe-off phase, and gender differences in the RCOF could also be observed during the heel contact phase in barefoot gait.
