QUANTIFYING LATERAL PELVIC DISPLACEMENT DURING WALKING

Objective. The purpose of this investigation was to test a new procedu re for quantifying lateral pelvic displacement during walking. Design. A quasi-experimental design was used to quantify the gait of 18 unimp aired people and one person with hemiplegia, Background, Although prev ious techniques provided useful information on amplitude of lateral pe lvic displacement, they did not consider step-to-step variations in wa lking direction or enable quantification of symmetry. Methods. Three-d imensional motion analysis was used to collect the coordinates of ligh t-reflective markers placed on the scarum and heels of each subject. S ubjects performed one 10 m overground walk at their preferred speed. A mplitude and symmetry of lateral pelvic displacement were quantified r elative to the step-to-step variation in the path of motion (base of s upport). Results. The mean amplitude of lateral pelvic displacement fo r the unimpaired group was 40.8 mm, and symmetry was 3.1 mm. The ampli tude of lateral pelvic displacement for the hemiplegic person was 88.4 mm. Symmetry was 30.9 mm, with deviation toward the non-paretic side, Conclusion. The new procedure provided information on the amplitude a nd symmetry of lateral pelvic displacement in unimpaired adults and wa s sensitive to deviations of a person with a walking abnormality.