Abstract
Gait disturbance is a common sequela of stroke. Conventional gait analysis has limitations in simultaneously assessing multiple joints. Therefore, we investigated the gait characteristics in stroke patients using hip-knee cyclograms, which have the advantage of simultaneously visualizing the gait kinematics of multiple joints. Stroke patients (n = 47) were categorized into two groups according to stroke severity, and healthy controls (n = 32) were recruited. An inertial measurement unit sensor-based gait analysis system, which requires placing seven sensors on the dorsum of both feet, the shafts of both tibias, the middle of both femurs, and the lower abdomen, was used for the gait analysis. Then, the hip-knee cyclogram parameters (range of motion, perimeter, and area) were obtained from the collected data. The coefficient of variance of the cyclogram parameters was obtained to evaluate gait variability. The cyclogram parameters differed between the stroke patients and healthy controls, and differences according to stroke severity were also observed. The gait variability parameters mainly differed in patients with more severe stroke, and specific visualized gait patterns of stroke patients were obtained through cyclograms. In conclusion, the hip-knee cyclograms, which show inter-joint coordination and visualized gait cycle in stroke patients, are clinically significant.
Highlights
Stroke is one of the main causes of long-term disability, including gait disturbances [1].Gait disturbance in stroke patients can impair their quality of life and increase their risk of falls [2,3]
There were no significant differences in age, sex, height, weight, and body mass index (BMI) between the groups
Duration, which was defined in this study as the time from the onset of stroke to the date of gait analysis, did not differ significantly between the mild and moderate stroke groups
Summary
Stroke is one of the main causes of long-term disability, including gait disturbances [1].Gait disturbance in stroke patients can impair their quality of life and increase their risk of falls [2,3]. Reduced hip and knee joint angles in the sagittal plane of hemiplegic gait have been reported [10]. Gait velocity is another parameter widely used to analyze the overall gait performance of stroke patients, which tends to be lower than that of healthy people [2,7,11]. Since gait is the result of cooperative movement of the hip, knee, and ankle joints, a problem in one joint can affect another, changing the entire gait cycle This implies that by assessing multiple joints simultaneously, we can analyze the conjoint motions of multiple joints more . Other methods that can integrate the kinematics of multiple joints in hemiplegic gait are needed
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