Relationship between selected static an dynamic lower extremity measures

Abstract

Twenty-four non-symptomatic subjects were recruited for this study. They were evaluated for foot-type and selected static parameters to determine their influence on kinematic and kinetic variables measured during barefoot overground walking. Foot-type and lower extremity characteristics were examined through the measurement of arch index, range of motion measurements of the ankle, subtalar, first metatarsal and hip joints, and the measurement of the orientation of the calcaneus and tibia. Measurements collected during the support phase of the gait cycle included kinetic measures via a force platform, kinematic measures of the knee joint using a three-dimensional electrogoniometer and kinematic measures of the rearfoot angle using a high speed motion camera. Angle of gait and step parameters were also measured utilizing an inked paper track system. Using the static evaluation measures to predict dynamic gait resulted in significant canonical correlations between first ray mobility and rotational values at the knee, first ray mobility and anteroposterior ground reaction force variables, and static hip internal-external rotation with varus-vaigus motion at the knee. The results suggest that static lower extremity measures have limited value in predicting dynamic lower extremity function to any great degree.