Effect of upper extremity load on pelvic movements during wheeled upright walker use.
Hiroki Aoyama, Kazuo Yonenobu, Katsushi Ogawa and 1 others
PMID 35400834WHAT IT FOUND
Arm load on a wheeled upright walker did not change pelvic movement in healthy young men.
Trunk tilt increased, speed fell at 30% and 40% body weight, stride was longer at 30%, and center-of-mass movement decreased.
Key findings
01Pelvic range of motion did not differ across upper-limb load conditions.
02Maximum forward lean of the trunk increased with upper-limb load, from 6.7° at 0% body weight to 28.9° at 40% body weight.
03Up-and-down center-of-mass movement was 17.4 mm at 0% body weight and 10.4 mm at 40% body weight.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The participants were 13 healthy young men, not patients with lower-extremity weakness, balance problems, or walker use in daily life. They were asked to imitate weak lower-extremity stability, so their walker use may not match real patient gait. The walker was modified with load sensors and a real-time display, so the findings may not apply to a standard walker. The walks were short laboratory trials on a 4-meter walkway, not community or home walking. Only right-foot initial contact on one force plate was used to define the gait cycle. Only men were included, and no older adults or clinical populations were studied.
Declared interests
The authors report no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that changing arm load on a walker changes pelvic movement in patients. The pelvic range of motion did not differ across load conditions, and the participants were healthy young men imitating weakness, not patients who need walkers.