Ground reaction forces during level ground walking with body weight unloading

Author(s)

Barela, Ana M. F. ^{[1, 2]} ; de Freitas, Paulo B. ^{[1, 2]} ; Celestino, Melissa L. ^[1] ; Camargo, Marcela R. ^[1] ; Barela, Jose A. ^{[1, 2, 3]}

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Cruzeiro Sul, Inst Ciencias Atividade Fis & Esporte, Lab Anal Movimento, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[2] Univ Cruzeiro Sul, Inst Ciencias Atividade Fis & Esporte, Programa Posgrad Ciencias Movimento Humano, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[3] Univ Estadual Paulista, Dept Educ Fis, Rio Claro, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: BRAZILIAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL THERAPY; v. 18, n. 6, p. 572-579, NOV-DEC 2014.
• Web of Science Citations: 10

Abstract

Background: Partial body weight support (BWS) systems have been broadly used with treadmills as a strategy for gait training of individuals with gait impairments. Considering that we usually walk on level ground and that BWS is achieved by altering the load on the plantar surface of the foot, it would be important to investigate some ground reaction force (GRF) parameters in healthy individuals walking on level ground with BWS to better implement rehabilitation protocols for individuals with gait impairments. Objective: To describe the effects of body weight unloading on GRF parameters as healthy young adults walked with BWS on level ground. Method: Eighteen healthy young adults (27±4 years old) walked on a walkway, with two force plates embedded in the middle of it, wearing a harness connected to a BWS system, with 0%, 15%, and 30% BWS. Vertical and horizontal peaks and vertical valley of GRF, weight acceptance and push-off rates, and impulse were calculated and compared across the three experimental conditions. Results: Overall, participants walked more slowly with the BWS system on level ground compared to their normal walking speed. As body weight unloading increased, the magnitude of the GRF forces decreased. Conversely, weight acceptance rate was similar among conditions. Conclusions: Different amounts of body weight unloading promote different outputs of GRF parameters, even with the same mean walk speed. The only parameter that was similar among the three experimental conditions was the weight acceptance rate. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 12/14634-9 - Biomechanical implications in gait with partial body weight support in static and dynamic surfaces
• Grantee: Marcela Regina de Camargo
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 10/15218-3 - Use of partial body weight support system on static and dynamic surfaces during walking training of children with cerebral palsy
• Grantee: Ana Maria Forti Barela
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 09/15003-0 - Use of somatosensory information on postural control of elderly individuals
• Grantee: Ana Maria Forti Barela
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants