Movement Of Young Adults Research Articles

Biomechanical Analysis of Stability of Walking Motion in Young Adults and in Aged Persons

Walking motions were analyzed from side views taken with a high speed video camera of 8 young adults and 10 aged persons.To assess postural control during walking, we placed wooden blocks of various heights (3, 5, 10, 15 and 20cm) in the subject's path and instructed him/her to step over the obstacle.1) The step lenth was much shorter in aged persons than in young adults. In young adult subjects, the step length increased with the height of an obstacle, from 0 to about 15cm, but decreased at 20cm. It is suggested that a change of strategy of step over an obstacle occurs at a certain height of the obstacle.2) The postural disturbance of the antero-postero sway of the trunk when stepping over an abstacle was much greater in aged subjects than in young adults.