TITLE:
Dynamic Lower-Limb Alignment Focusing on Gait Stability
AUTHORS:
Kan Imai, Takeshi Onishi, Koshiro Sawada
KEYWORDS:
Prosthetic Limbs, Alignment, Gait, Below-the-Knee Amputation
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Therapy and Rehabilitation,
Vol.10 No.4,
October
28,
2022
ABSTRACT: Introduction: Prosthetic limbs must be developed with proper alignment to facilitate
safe and efficient gait patterns. This study aimed to identify factors
impacting clinically proper gait patterns by objectively evaluating them in
persons with lower-limb amputations who use prosthetic limbs. Materials and
Methods: This non-experimental descriptive study assessed 58 persons with amputation who used prosthetic limbs. The
mechanical axis angle (MAA) of the lower limb during the heel contact,
midstance, and toe-off phases and the angle between the tube and floor during
the midstance phase were measured using coronal plane gait images. We also
investigated whether the MAA and tube angle during the midstance phase have a
multimodal distribution. In case of multimodal distributions, we tested for
significant between-group differences in patient characteristics. Results:
The MAA and tube angle in the coronal plane during the midstance phase had a
bimodal distribution (mean 0°). There was a significant difference in the
duration of prosthetic limb use between the MAA Conclusions:
In this study, prosthetic alignment during the midstance phase had a bimodal
distribution. In both groups, deviations in the lower limb MAA were aligned to
be approximately 3°.