Abstract
The continuous, accurate and reliable estimation of gait parameters as a measure of mobility is essential to assess the loss of functional capacity related to the progression of disease. Connected insoles are suitable wearable devices which allow precise, continuous, remote and passive gait assessment. The data of 25 healthy volunteers aged 20 to 77 years were analysed in the study to validate gait parameters (stride length, velocity, stance, swing, step and single support durations and cadence) measured by FeetMe® insoles against the GAITRite® mat reference. The mean values and the values of variability were calculated per subject for GAITRite® and insoles. A t-test and Levene’s test were used to compare the gait parameters for means and variances, respectively, obtained for both devices. Additionally, measures of bias, standard deviation of differences, Pearson’s correlation and intraclass correlation were analysed to explore overall agreement between the two devices. No significant differences in mean and variance between the two devices were detected. Pearson’s correlation coefficients of averaged gait estimates were higher than 0.98 and 0.8, respectively, for unipedal and bipedal gait parameters, supporting a high level of agreement between the two devices. The connected insoles are therefore a device equivalent to GAITRite® to estimate the mean and variability of gait parameters.
Highlights
A large number of conditions, including physiological aging, can influence gait patterns
A higher variability in terms of magnitude and dynamics often reflects an impairment of gait, which is typically observed in movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease (PD) or Huntington’s disease [10,13]
heel strike (HS) and TO were detected by the capacitive cell pressure sensors and the related temporal parameters such as swing, stance and step, and single support durations were calculated from HS and TO event timings
Summary
A large number of conditions, including physiological aging, can influence gait patterns. Disturbance of gait can be an important disease symptom and is evaluated by performing qualitative gait assessments, such as visual observations as well as by using specific clinical scales (e.g., Expanded Disability Status Scale for multiple sclerosis, the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale for Parkinson’s disease (PD)) [1,2]. These and other descriptive routine clinical assessments are often not accurate enough to measure gait precisely or monitor changes sensitively over time. A higher variability in terms of magnitude and dynamics often reflects an impairment of gait, which is typically observed in movement disorders such as PD or Huntington’s disease [10,13]
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