Abstract
BackgroundTurning involves complex reorientation of the body and is accompanied by asymmetric motion of the lower limbs. We investigated the distribution of the forces under the two feet, and its relation to the trajectory features and body medio-lateral displacement during curved walking.MethodsTwenty-six healthy young participants walked under three different randomized conditions: in a straight line (LIN), in a circular clockwise path and in a circular counter-clockwise path. Both feet were instrumented with Pedar-X insoles. An accelerometer was fixed to the trunk to measure the medio-lateral inclination of the body. We analyzed walking speed, stance duration as a percent of gait cycle (%GC), the vertical component of the ground reaction force (vGRF) of both feet during the entire stance, and trunk inclination.ResultsGait speed was faster during LIN than curved walking, but not affected by the direction of the curved trajectory. Trunk inclination was negligible during LIN, while the trunk was inclined toward the center of the path during curved trajectories. Stance duration of LIN foot and foot inside the curved trajectory (Foot-In) was longer than for foot outside the trajectory (Foot-Out). vGRF at heel strike was larger in LIN than in curved walking. At mid-stance, vGRF for both Foot-In and Foot-Out was higher than for LIN foot. At toe off, vGRF for both Foot-In and Foot-Out was lower than for LIN foot; in addition, Foot-In had lower vGRF than Foot-Out. During curved walking, a greater loading of the lateral heel occurred for Foot-Out than Foot-In and LIN foot. On the contrary, a smaller lateral loading of the heel was found for Foot-In than LIN foot. At the metatarsal heads, an opposite behaviour was seen, since lateral loading decreased for Foot-Out and increased for Foot-In.ConclusionsThe lower gait speed during curved walking is shaped by the control of trunk inclination and the production of asymmetric loading of heel and metatarsal heads, hence by the different contribution of the feet in producing the body inclination towards the centre of the trajectory.
Highlights
Turning involves complex reorientation of the body and is accompanied by asymmetric motion of the lower limbs
Stance duration of the Foot-Out was shorter than that of LIN foot and foot inside the curved trajectory (Foot-In), while there was no difference between LIN foot and Foot-In
The changes observed in the above gait variable according to the type of trajectory confirmed previous findings in young [19] and elderly subjects as well as patients [10,11]
Summary
Turning involves complex reorientation of the body and is accompanied by asymmetric motion of the lower limbs. Knowledge about the spatio-temporal pattern of distribution of the ground reaction forces (GRF) when walking in a circle may be useful for assessing the control of medio-lateral equilibrium and the way subjects and patients accomplish the task. It could help in detecting changes due to diseases of the central [11,12,13] or peripheral nervous system [14], and in estimating the evolution of the walking disorder or the potential advantage of gait rehabilitation [15,16]. Plantar pressure analysis from different points of the foot sole [17] has a high degree of reliability [18,19], and can be useful and appropriate for such assessment
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