Gait evaluation of a transfemoral prosthetic simulator

Objective: To test a prosthetic simulator developed to allow persons withou t amputation to walk like a person with a transfemoral (TF) amputation. Patients: Five able-bodied subjects; comparison with data from the literatu re on persons with TF amputations. Setting: Motion analysis laboratory. Design: Two 45- to 60-minute gait training sessions before subjects walked along a 10-meter walkway. There were 6 trials: 3 walking with a cane, 3 wit hout a cane. Main Objective Measures: Sagittal plane kinematic and kinetic analysis of a nkle, knee, and hip: angular velocity, joint moment, and power. Results: Kinematic and kinetic analyses showed that joint mechanics during walking were similar between the test subjects and comparative results from persons with TF amputations (reported in the literature). Test subjects wa lked slower and moved their hip and knee joints faster (higher angular velo city values during the terminal swing) than the TF amputee subjects, althou gh these results were not statistically significant (p < .05). These findin gs were consistent with new prosthetic users who are more tentative during gait training. However, a perfect simulation would show no difference in ki nematic results. Conclusion: These results support the use of a TF prosthetic simulator to h elp health care professionals experience the process of fitting the prosthe sis from the client's perspective.