Research: Walking Analysis

Huisinga JM, Schmid KK, Filipi ML, Stergiou N. Gait Mechanics are Different between Healthy Controls and Patients with Multiple Sclerosis. J Appl Biomech. 2012 Aug 22. [Epub ahead of print]

Multiple sclerosis (MS) causes severe gait problems in relatively young individuals, yet there have been limited studies to quantitatively identify the specific gait parameters which are affected. The purpose of this study was to define any differences in biomechanical gait parameters between patients with MS and healthy controls. A total of 31 MS patients and 31 healthy controls were evaluated where joint torques and joint powers were calculated at the ankle, knee, and hip during the stance phase of gait. The self-selected walking velocity was used as a covariate in the analysis to ensure that group differences were not due to differences in walking velocity between the MS and healthy control groups. Reduced angular range, less joint torque, and reduced joint power were seen in patients with MS. We also found significant correlations between biomechanical gait parameters and EDSS score which provides a clinical rating of disease severity. Our findings provide a quantitative assessment of the gait mechanics employed in patients with MS. The altered lower extremity mechanics observed in patients with MS reflect both a neurological and strength deficit compared with healthy controls during walking.
There are lots of posts on walking and gait problems in MS, this study suggests that there in differences in the mechanics of how one walks.

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