Altered muscle activation patterns (AMAP): an analytical tool to compare muscle activity patterns of hemiparetic gait with a normative profile.
Shraddha Srivastava, Carolynn Patten, Steven A Kautz
PMID 30704483WHAT IT FOUND
A new muscle activity analysis tool identified specific timing and amplitude deviations in stroke survivors' walking.
Plantarflexor abnormalities correlated with reduced propulsion and slower walking speeds, offering a way to target gait rehabilitation based on individual muscle coordination deficits.
Key findings
01The tool identified altered muscle patterns in a majority of stroke survivors for key walking muscles, such as the soleus and medial gastrocnemius.
02Abnormal timing and amplitude of the soleus and medial gastrocnemius muscles were significantly correlated with slower self-selected walking speeds in stroke survivors.
03Reduced propulsion from the paretic leg was negatively correlated with abnormal timing of the soleus muscle.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study only analyzed the paretic leg in stroke survivors, ignoring the non-paretic leg which also contributes to gait asymmetry. The EMG data was normalized to peak activity during walking, not to maximum voluntary contraction, so absolute muscle force cannot be determined. The 'normal' range was based on a small group of 20 healthy controls, which may not represent the full variability of healthy walking. This was a cross-sectional comparison, not an intervention study, so it does not prove that correcting these patterns improves walking.
Declared interests
Funding was provided by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Institutes of Health. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that correcting these specific EMG patterns will automatically improve walking speed or function. This study shows a correlation between abnormal muscle timing/amplitude and poor gait metrics, but it has not yet tested whether an intervention targeting these patterns leads to better clinical outcomes.