Gait Parameter Variability During Obstacle Avoidance

PURPOSE:Differences in thigh to shank relationships can influence center of mass location and mass moments of inertia of each segment and individuals with greater differences in thigh and shank lengths may demonstrate more variability in gait parameters. These differences may become more pronounced when navigating a stationary obstacle. Therefore, this project aimed to compare the variability of gait parameters between individuals with greater and lesser differences in thigh and shank lengths during gait and obstacle navigation. METHODS: Twenty-six individuals provided voluntary consent (age: 22.5 + 3.1 yrs) and completed 20 continuous, self-selected paced walking trials over an instrumented walkway with an obstacle and without an obstacle. Stride length, step time, and single support percent were dependent measures of a linear mixed-effects model. The participants were divided into two groups: Group 1 had a difference in thigh to shank length of 2 cm or less, while Group 2 had a difference of more than 2 cm. RESULTS: The results suggest that the presence of a stationary obstacle increases the variability in stride length (p < 0.001), step time (p < 0.001) and single support percent (p < 0.001), as indicated by higher %CV values. The difference between shank and femur lengths did not significantly affect the variability in these parameters (stride length (p = 0.860), step time (p < 0.891) and single support percent (p = .741)). CONCLUSIONS: Including a stationary obstacle increases the variability of stride length, step time and single support percentage. However, no significant difference was noted between groups of participants with thigh to shank length differences of 2 cm or less and those with more than 2 cm of length discrepancy. Further research is needed to identify if a larger difference threshold would yield a difference between groups, indicating the role of anthropometric influences on control strategies.