Gait analysis on force treadmill in children: comparison with results from ground-based force platforms.
Luigi Tesio, Chiara Malloggi, Nicola M Portinaro and 3 others
PMID 28719477WHAT IT FOUND
In healthy children aged 5 to 13, a force treadmill gave gait results broadly similar to floor platform walking, but the youngest children took shorter steps and walked with slightly more flexed hips, knees and ankles.
Key findings
01Treadmill walking in children produced joint rotation and power curves that overlapped with ground walking reference data, with no significant difference indicated by the comparison bands.
02Children aged 5 to 6 years took steps 9.19% shorter on the treadmill than on the ground and showed a more flexed hip, knee and ankle posture.
03The fixed treadmill speed made walking speed more reliable than over-ground walking in children.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The experimental sample had only 20 children, and each age group was small. Treadmill walking was compared with ground walking in a different control sample, not the same children. The experimental and control sample sizes were not matched within age groups. The treadmill speed was not perfectly matched to the control ground speed, especially in the 5 to 6 year group, where it was 13.19% lower. Only one average speed was tested for each age group. The children were healthy and free from neurologic or orthopedic impairments, so the results do not show what happens in children with walking disorders.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that force treadmill gait analysis is interchangeable with floor platform gait analysis for all children. The study tested 20 healthy children, and the youngest group showed shorter steps and more flexed posture, so results may not transfer to children with walking disorders.