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Aging effects on leg joint variability during walking with balance perturbations.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Qiao, M; Feld, JA; Franz, JR
Published in: Gait Posture
May 2018

BACKGROUND: Older adults are more susceptible to balance perturbations during walking than young adults. However, we lack an individual joint-level understanding of how aging affects the neuromechanical strategies used to accommodate balance perturbations. RESEARCH QUESTION: We investigated gait phase-dependence in and aging effects on leg joint kinematic variability during walking with balance perturbations. We hypothesized that leg joint variability would: 1) vary across the gait cycle and 2) increase with balance perturbations. We also hypothesized that perturbation effects on leg joint kinematic variability would be larger and more pervasive in older versus young adults. METHODS: We collected leg joint kinematics in young and older adults walking with and without mediolateral optical flow perturbations of different amplitudes. RESULTS: We first found that leg joint variability during walking is gait phase-dependent, with step-to-step adjustments occurring predominantly during push-off and early swing. Second, young adults accommodated perturbations almost exclusively by increasing coronal plane hip joint variability, likely to adjust step width. Third, perturbations elicited larger and more pervasive increases in all joint kinematic outcome measures in older adults. Finally, we also provide insight into which joints contribute more to foot placement variability in walking, adding that variability in sagittal plane knee and coronal plane hip joint angles contributed most to that in step length and step width, respectively. SIGNIFICANCE: Taken together, our findings may be highly relevant to identifying specific joint-level therapeutic targets to mitigate balance impairment in our aging population.

Duke Scholars

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Published In

Gait Posture

DOI

EISSN

1879-2219

Publication Date

May 2018

Volume

62

Start / End Page

27 / 33

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Young Adult
  • Walking
  • Range of Motion, Articular
  • Postural Balance
  • Orthopedics
  • Male
  • Knee Joint
  • Humans
  • Hip Joint
  • Healthy Volunteers
 

Citation

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Qiao, M., Feld, J. A., & Franz, J. R. (2018). Aging effects on leg joint variability during walking with balance perturbations. Gait Posture, 62, 27–33. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gaitpost.2018.02.020
Qiao, Mu, Jody A. Feld, and Jason R. Franz. “Aging effects on leg joint variability during walking with balance perturbations.Gait Posture 62 (May 2018): 27–33. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gaitpost.2018.02.020.
Qiao M, Feld JA, Franz JR. Aging effects on leg joint variability during walking with balance perturbations. Gait Posture. 2018 May;62:27–33.
Qiao, Mu, et al. “Aging effects on leg joint variability during walking with balance perturbations.Gait Posture, vol. 62, May 2018, pp. 27–33. Pubmed, doi:10.1016/j.gaitpost.2018.02.020.
Qiao M, Feld JA, Franz JR. Aging effects on leg joint variability during walking with balance perturbations. Gait Posture. 2018 May;62:27–33.
Journal cover image

Published In

Gait Posture

DOI

EISSN

1879-2219

Publication Date

May 2018

Volume

62

Start / End Page

27 / 33

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Young Adult
  • Walking
  • Range of Motion, Articular
  • Postural Balance
  • Orthopedics
  • Male
  • Knee Joint
  • Humans
  • Hip Joint
  • Healthy Volunteers