Measuring gait pattern in elderly individuals by using a plantar pressure measurement device.

Abstract

Hip fracture in the elderly is a serious problem, and solutions to prevent falls are needed. This study focused on elucidating data critical to fall prevention by evaluating ambulatory function, and we achieved this by developing a plantar pressure measurement device to determine gait function. Our device enables measurement of gait function in the unrestrained state by transmitting wireless data. In this study, we applied the device to field experiments involving 98 subjects (39 healthy individuals, 44 elderly non-fallers, and 15 elderly fallers). Gait features were determined by measuring the pressure values and foot contact patterns used as gait function parameters in previous studies. In particular, decreased peak pressure values were noted at heel strike and toe off during walking in elderly fallers compared with elderly non-fallers. In addition, compared with healthy subjects, elderly fallers also showed extension of the double support phase, and differences in individual gait pattern features were observed between the groups. Experiments confirmed that our device can be used to obtain the gait features of a diverse group of elderly individuals. Moreover, our device enables objective and quantitative evaluation of gait function and thus may be useful for evaluating gait function in the elderly.