Vol. 4, No 1, 2006 pp. 49 - 58
UDC 796.012.412 : 613.98
Scientific Paper
GAIT PARAMETERS OF HEALTHY, ELDERLY
PEOPLE
Róbert Paróczai1,
Zoltán Bejek2, Árpád Illyés2,
László Kocsis1, Rita M. Kiss3
1Department
of Applied Mechanics, Budapest University of Technology and Economics,
Budapest, Hungary
2Semmelweis University, Department of
Orthopaedics, Budapest, Hungary
3Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Research
Group of Structures Budapest, Hungary
E-mail: kiss@vbt.bme.hu
Abstract. Walking is one of the most common human movements. It
means to transport the body safely and efficiently across ground level,
uphill or downhill. Walking is learned during the first year of life
and reaches maturity around the age of seven,remaining at the same
level until 60. In old age one's walking performance starts to decline
and it gradually slows down. With the increased life expectancy of the
elderly and their more active lifestyle, there is now an emphasis on
determining any changes that occur in their gait patterns, in order to
indentify diagnostic measures that are usable for monitoring the
rehabilitation process after endoprothesis implantation. The aim of
this study is to determine how selected kinematical, kinetic and
electromyographical parameters may change as a result of aging. A total
of 31 healthy elderly subjects without any history of lower extremity
joint pathology were investigated at constant gait speed (three km/h).
The gait analysis equipment used consisted of an infinitely adjustable
treadmill with force-plates and an ultrasound-based motion analyser
with a surface electromyograph. Spatial-temporal, angular, kinetic and
electromyographical parameters were recorded for the lower extremities.
The results obtained from the lower limb were compared on both sides as
well as with those of 50 healthy young individuals collected from our
database. The elderly had a significantly shorter step length and wider
step width compared to the results of a young control group. Our
results showed that the aged individuals demostrated a statistically
lesser range of motion in different joints during walking. We suggested
that neurophysiological changes associated with aging might result in
the less certainty of the neuromuscular system in selecting a stable
gait.
Key words: gait analysis, kinematics, kinetics,
electromyography, the elderly
PARAMETRI HODANJA ZDRAVIH
STARIJIH LJUDI
Hodanje je jedno od najčešćih ljudskih kretnji. To je način
transportovanja tela sigurno i efikasno po zemlji, uzbrdo ili nizbrdo.
Hodanje se uči tokom prve godine života i postiže svoj maksimum oko
sedme godine i ostaje na tom nivou sve do 60 godine života. Kod
starijih osoba hodanje počinje postepeno da opada u kvalitetu. Sa
produžetkom životnog veka starijih osoba i njihovim aktivnijim načinom
života sada postaje imperativ utvrđivanje bilo kakvih promena u načinu
njihovog hodanja kako bi se odredile dijagnostičke metode koje bi
pomogle u procesu kontrole rehabilitacije nakon implantacije
endoproteze. Cilj ovog istraživanja je da se odredi kako selektivni
kinematički, kinetički elektromiografski parametri mogu da utiču na
promenu statusa kao rezultat starenja. Istraživan je uzorak od ukupno
31 starijeg ispitanika bez istorije patologije donjih ekstremiteta pri
konstatnoj brzini hoda (3 km/h). Oprema za analizu hoda sastojala se od
podešive staze za hodanje sa pločama za određivanje snage i
ultrazvučnog analizatora pokreta sa površinskim elektromiografom.
Registrovani su spacijalno-temporalni, angularni, kinetički i
elektromiografski parametri za donje ekstremitete. Dobijeni rezultati
za donje ekstremitete su upoređivani za obe strane kao i sa primerima
50 zdravih mladih osoba, preuzetih iz naše baze podataka. Stariji
ispitanici su pokazali značajno kraće dužine koraka i veće širine
koraka u poređenju sa mlađom kontrolnom grupom.
Ključne reči: analiza hodanja, kinematika, kinetika,
elektromiografija, odrasli
