Characterising gait over different walking speeds in patients with bilateral vestibular loss: preliminary results
Conference: 2nd International Congress on Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair
Abstract: Bilateral vestibular hypofunction (BVH) is a bilateral reduction or loss of vestibular function resulting in balance deficits and an increased falls risk. As part of a larger study, this experiment aimed to assess how spatiotemporal gait characteristics and their variability change across different walking speeds in patients with BVH. Nine patients (55±15y) with BVH have participated thus far. Experiments were conducted on the CAREN Extended system (Motekforce Link, Amsterdam, The Netherlands). Following multiple familiarisation trials, the participants completed five recorded two minute walking bouts at different speeds (0.6m/s, 0.8m/s, 1.0m/s, 1.2m/s and 1.4m/s). 60 strides per speed were analysed and the means, standard deviations and coefficients of variation (CV) of stride length and time, step length and width, double support time and swing phase toe clearance were calculated. Stride length, step length and toe clearance all increased with increases in walking speed (P<0.001). Stride and double support time decreased with increased walking speed (P<0.0001). No walking speed effect was found for step width (P=0.25). Significant reductions in variability with increases in walking speed were found for stride length, stride time, step length, toe clearance (P<0.01) and double support time (P<0.05). A significant increase in step width variability was observed with increases in walking speed (P=0.0033). These preliminary data suggest that while anteroposterior gait characteristics may improve in terms or variability with increases in walking speed in these patients, mediolateral motions may become more variable, which may have implications for mediolateral stability and falls risk in patients with BVH.
Listed In: Biomechanics, Gait, Neuroscience,
Tagged In: gait, gait variability, locomotion, stability, vestibulopathy
View PDF | Contact Author
Abstract: Bilateral vestibular hypofunction (BVH) is a bilateral reduction or loss of vestibular function resulting in balance deficits and an increased falls risk. As part of a larger study, this experiment aimed to assess how spatiotemporal gait characteristics and their variability change across different walking speeds in patients with BVH. Nine patients (55±15y) with BVH have participated thus far. Experiments were conducted on the CAREN Extended system (Motekforce Link, Amsterdam, The Netherlands). Following multiple familiarisation trials, the participants completed five recorded two minute walking bouts at different speeds (0.6m/s, 0.8m/s, 1.0m/s, 1.2m/s and 1.4m/s). 60 strides per speed were analysed and the means, standard deviations and coefficients of variation (CV) of stride length and time, step length and width, double support time and swing phase toe clearance were calculated. Stride length, step length and toe clearance all increased with increases in walking speed (P<0.001). Stride and double support time decreased with increased walking speed (P<0.0001). No walking speed effect was found for step width (P=0.25). Significant reductions in variability with increases in walking speed were found for stride length, stride time, step length, toe clearance (P<0.01) and double support time (P<0.05). A significant increase in step width variability was observed with increases in walking speed (P=0.0033). These preliminary data suggest that while anteroposterior gait characteristics may improve in terms or variability with increases in walking speed in these patients, mediolateral motions may become more variable, which may have implications for mediolateral stability and falls risk in patients with BVH.
Listed In: Biomechanics, Gait, Neuroscience,
Tagged In: gait, gait variability, locomotion, stability, vestibulopathy
View PDF | Contact Author