Control of normal mobility Flashcards
What are the three things we need for successful locomotion
- Progression (Move between two points)
- Postural Control
- Adaptation
Explain the phases of Gait
Goal during Stance Gait
- Generate horizontal forces (progression)
- Generate vertical forces (postural control; keep us upright)
- Adapt (speed, direction, support surface)
Goals during Swing Gait
- Advance the swing leg (progression)
- Position the swing leg (postural control)
- Adapt (obstacle avoidance, support surface)
Velocity - Gait
Average horizontal speed of body over 1+ strides
Velocity = step length X step cadence
Ave. adult velocity = 1.46 m/sec (3.26 mi/hr)
Step Length - Gait
- Distance from one foot strike to the next contralateral foot strike
- Ave. adult step length = 76.3 cm (30.05 in.)
- Heel to Heel or Toe to Toe
Step Frequency (Cadence)
- Number of steps per unit time
- Ave. adult walking cadence = 1.9 steps/second (112.5 steps/min) – differs for running
Step Width - Gait
Distance between the feet (base of support)
Normal range = 2.5 – 12.5 cm
If you see negative step width values, what does that mean?
They are ataxic and have a scissoring gait
If you see a step width outside normal, what could this mean?
They don’t feel stable thus create a larger BOS
When we increase walking speed, ____ time becomes shorter
stance
What is the difference between walking and running?
Running has flight time, no double support.
What happens when we decrease walking speed?
- Stance time increases
- Swing slows
- Decreased efficency, more time in single leg stance
- More variability (some is too too much is bad)
- COM displacement increases in the ML
- Contributes to instability
Why is some variability in movement/gait good?
Allows us to adapt to different circumstances and spreads out tissue stress.
A healthy amount of variability leads to…
- Smooth movements
- More stable control of center of mass through space
- Also allows for one joints loss of motion to compensate for the other (Although over time may lead to too much stress and causes injury)