In healthy individuals, symmetrical lower-extremity movement is often assumed and calculated using discrete points during various tasks. However, measuring overall movement patterns using methods such as statistical parametric mapping (SPM) may allow for better interpretation of human movement. This study demonstrated the ability of SPM to assess interlimb differences in lower-extremity movement during 2 example tasks: running and landing. Three-dimensional motion analysis was used to determine sagittal and frontal plane lower-extremity joint angles in (1) young and older individuals during running and (2) patients with anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction and uninjured control athletes during landing. Interlimb differences within each group were compared using SPM and paired t tests on peak discrete angles. No differences between limbs were found between young and older runners using SPM. Peak ankle eversion and plantar flexion angles differed between limbs in young and older runners. Sagittal plane hip angle varied between limbs in uninjured control athletes. Frontal plane ankle angle and sagittal plane knee and hip angles differed between limbs in patients with anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction using SPM and discrete analysis. These data suggest that SPM can be useful to determine clinically meaningful interlimb differences during running and landing in multiple populations.
Purpose
Coordination and coordination variability have been used as a measure of the function and flexibility of the sensorimotor system during running. Chronic ankle instability (CAI) is associated with altered sensorimotor system function compared with individuals without CAI. Copers may have adopted protective sensorimotor adaptations to prevent repeated ankle sprains; however, their coordination strategies between the foot and shank have not been investigated. We compared joint coupling angles and coordination variability using vector coding between individuals with CAI, copers, and controls.
Methods
Seventeen individuals with CAI, 17 copers, and 17 controls ran on the treadmill at a fixed speed of 2.68 m·s−1. A 10-s trial of continuous data was collected for kinematic analysis. The first five complete strides were used for vector coding. Means of the vector coding angles and variability of frontal plane ankle motion/transverse plane tibia motion and sagittal plane ankle motion/transverse plane tibia motion (SAK/TT) were calculated. A curve analysis with 90% confidence intervals was performed to detect differences between groups.
Results
Controls demonstrated greater angles of SAK/TT than individuals with CAI and greater angles of FAK/TT than copers during the second half of stance. In general, the control group demonstrated greater variability than individuals with CAI and copers, and copers demonstrated greater variability than individuals with CAI.
Conclusions
Chronic ankle instability and copers demonstrated different coordination strategies than controls during loading and propulsion, adding evidence to support a sensorimotor deficit or compensation. Further, limited variability in people with history of CAI during impact and midstance may contribute to higher risk of reinjury, and be an important area for further research.
Novice runners experience a higher incidence of knee injury than experienced runners, which may be related to aberrant frontal and transverse plane kinematics. However, differences in kinematics between novice and experienced runners have not been fully explored. For this study, 10 novice and 10 experienced female runners ran on a treadmill at 2.68 m/s. Ankle, knee, and hip joint angles during the stance phase were measured using a 3-dimensional motion capture system and modeled using cubic splines. Spline models were compared between groups using a generalized linear model (α = .05). Ninety-five percent confidence intervals of the difference between joint angles throughout stance were constructed to identify specific periods of stance where groups differed in joint position. Angle–angle diagrams of ankle and hip position in the frontal and transverse planes were constructed to depict joint coordination. Novice runners displayed less hip adduction, but greater knee abduction and knee internal rotation compared to experienced runners. Differences in knee joint position may be explained by coordination of hip and ankle motion. Greater knee abduction and knee internal rotation displayed by novice runners compared with experienced runners may help to explain their higher risk for injury.
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