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Ito Y1, Ushiyama N1, Kurobe Y1,2, Momose K3
1Fujimi Kogen Hospital, Department of Physical Therapy, Nagano, Japan, 2Shinshu University, Graduate School of Medicine, Nagano, Japan, 3Shinshu University, Department of Physical Therapy, School of Health Sciences, Nagano, Japan
Background: Measurement of self-selected comfortable walking speed has been shown to have good reliability and is correlated with various health outcomes. Therefore, walking speed is commonly used as an objective measure of functional mobility. Measurement of steady state walking speed requires a few steps for acceleration. Biomechanical analysis have shown that steady state walking speed is achieved within 3.16 ± 0.92 meters in healthy young subjects and 1.43 ± 0.88 meters in the frail elderly. However, the typical distance traveled in the acceleration phase of gait has not been quantified for community-dwelling elderly subjects.
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between comfortable walking speed and the distance to achieve steady state walking speed, and to quantify the distance to achieve steady state walking speed in community-dwelling elderly subjects.
Methods: This study employed a cross-sectional design. Subjects were recruited from the participants of a health promotion program and outpatients of our hospital. Inclusion criteria included age above 65 years, and ability to walk 25m with or without an assistive device. Exclusion criterion included acute musculoskeletal disorders, neuropathy and dementia. Four miniature gyroscopes, which were attached to each thigh and shank, measured the velocity of the angular rotation of each lower limb segment around the coronal axis during walking. Based on Lindeman's mechanical model, spatial variables were estimated by integration of the angular rate of rotation of the thigh and shank. The key outcome variable was the distance to achieve steady state walking. Mean distance to achieve steady state walking was calculated for the total group. The optimal distance for acceleration was defined as the mean distance to achieve the steady state walking added to the double standard deviation. The association between gait speed during the first six strides of steady state walking and distance to achieve steady state walking was assessed by Pearson's correlation coefficients.
Results: Twenty-seven community-dwelling elderly subjects (18 females, 4 males) with a mean age of 75.1 years (SD = 6.5) participated in this study. Five participants had an outlier of the distance to achieve steady state walking. There was no correlation between walking speed and distance to achieve steady state walking. Mean distance to achieve steady state walking was 2.48 m (SD = 0.61). The mean distance to achieve the steady state walking added to the double standard deviation was 3.70 m.
Conclusion(s): The optimal distance for acceleration was 3.70 m. This study suggested that future work should provide the distance for acceleration to assess the steady state comfortable walking speed in community-dwelling elderly subjects.
Implications: The results can be used in physical therapy assessment to measure the comfortable walking speed in community dwelling elderly subjects.
Keywords: Gait initiation, Steady state walking, gyroscopes
Funding acknowledgements: This work was unfunded.
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between comfortable walking speed and the distance to achieve steady state walking speed, and to quantify the distance to achieve steady state walking speed in community-dwelling elderly subjects.
Methods: This study employed a cross-sectional design. Subjects were recruited from the participants of a health promotion program and outpatients of our hospital. Inclusion criteria included age above 65 years, and ability to walk 25m with or without an assistive device. Exclusion criterion included acute musculoskeletal disorders, neuropathy and dementia. Four miniature gyroscopes, which were attached to each thigh and shank, measured the velocity of the angular rotation of each lower limb segment around the coronal axis during walking. Based on Lindeman's mechanical model, spatial variables were estimated by integration of the angular rate of rotation of the thigh and shank. The key outcome variable was the distance to achieve steady state walking. Mean distance to achieve steady state walking was calculated for the total group. The optimal distance for acceleration was defined as the mean distance to achieve the steady state walking added to the double standard deviation. The association between gait speed during the first six strides of steady state walking and distance to achieve steady state walking was assessed by Pearson's correlation coefficients.
Results: Twenty-seven community-dwelling elderly subjects (18 females, 4 males) with a mean age of 75.1 years (SD = 6.5) participated in this study. Five participants had an outlier of the distance to achieve steady state walking. There was no correlation between walking speed and distance to achieve steady state walking. Mean distance to achieve steady state walking was 2.48 m (SD = 0.61). The mean distance to achieve the steady state walking added to the double standard deviation was 3.70 m.
Conclusion(s): The optimal distance for acceleration was 3.70 m. This study suggested that future work should provide the distance for acceleration to assess the steady state comfortable walking speed in community-dwelling elderly subjects.
Implications: The results can be used in physical therapy assessment to measure the comfortable walking speed in community dwelling elderly subjects.
Keywords: Gait initiation, Steady state walking, gyroscopes
Funding acknowledgements: This work was unfunded.
Topic: Older people; Older people; Outcome measurement
Ethics approval required: Yes
Institution: Shinshu University
Ethics committee: Committee for Medical Ethics of Shinshu University School of Medicine
Ethics number: 3811
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
