Variability of Gait is Dependent on Direction of Motion
Advisor Information
Shane Wurdeman
Location
Milo Bail Student Center Gallery Room
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Start Date
8-3-2013 9:45 AM
End Date
8-3-2013 10:00 AM
Abstract
Human walking displays increased uncertainty in the medial-lateral (ML) direction compared to the anteroposterior (AP) direction. Because of the increased variability, it has been suggested that ML foot placement during walking requires increased upper motor neuron control whereas AP foot placement is a more passive reflex action. To this point all studies have utilized walking in the AP direction, an obvious bias, as this is the primary direction of human locomotion. However, it is not entirely clear if the AP and ML direction have truly been partitioned within the neuromuscular system, or whether foot placement in the plane least reliant upon gravity depends more on active neural control. In this study we tested the amount of variability in foot placement in a lateral stepping gait. We hypothesized subjects would display more variability in the AP plane than the ML plane. Sixteen subjects (age: 23.4 yrs ± 3.3; height: 179.0 cm ± 7.4; mass: 83.4 kg ± 15.7) performed a three minute treadmill trial while heel and toe position were recorded and analyzed. The Coefficient of Variation (CoV) for the AP direction was significantly greater than the ML direction (F1,15=473.343, p
Variability of Gait is Dependent on Direction of Motion
Milo Bail Student Center Gallery Room
Human walking displays increased uncertainty in the medial-lateral (ML) direction compared to the anteroposterior (AP) direction. Because of the increased variability, it has been suggested that ML foot placement during walking requires increased upper motor neuron control whereas AP foot placement is a more passive reflex action. To this point all studies have utilized walking in the AP direction, an obvious bias, as this is the primary direction of human locomotion. However, it is not entirely clear if the AP and ML direction have truly been partitioned within the neuromuscular system, or whether foot placement in the plane least reliant upon gravity depends more on active neural control. In this study we tested the amount of variability in foot placement in a lateral stepping gait. We hypothesized subjects would display more variability in the AP plane than the ML plane. Sixteen subjects (age: 23.4 yrs ± 3.3; height: 179.0 cm ± 7.4; mass: 83.4 kg ± 15.7) performed a three minute treadmill trial while heel and toe position were recorded and analyzed. The Coefficient of Variation (CoV) for the AP direction was significantly greater than the ML direction (F1,15=473.343, p