Article

Turning plays a prominent role in daily living activities and requires the
modulation of the ground reaction forces to accelerate the body's center-of-mass
along the path of the turn. With the ankle plantarflexors being prominent
contributors to the propulsive ground reaction forces, it is not clear how
transtibial amputees perform turning tasks without these important muscles. The
purpose of this study was to identify the compensatory mechanisms used by
transtibial amputees during a simple turning task by analyzing the radial and
anterior-posterior ground reaction impulses and sagittal, transverse and coronal
joint work of the residual and intact legs. These quantities were analyzed with
the residual leg on both the inside and outside of the turn and compared to
non-amputees. The analysis showed that amputees and non-amputees use different
joint strategies to turn. Amputees rely primarily on sagittal plane hip joint
work to turn while non-amputees rely primarily on ankle work in the sagittal
plane and hip joint work in the coronal plane. Differences in strategies are most
likely due to the minimal power output provided by the passive prosthetic feet
used by amputees and perhaps a desire to minimize the risk of falling.
Understanding these differences in turning strategies will aid in developing
effective rehabilitation therapies and prosthetic devices that improve amputee
mobility.
CI - Copyright (c) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS