The length of the residual femur substantially influences temporospatial and kinematic gait outcomes following transfemoral amputation, and appears to be more important than femoral orientation with regard to these parameters.

No abstract

Study Design: Counterbalanced experimental design study comparing a group of subjects with greater than or equal to 7°of forefoot varus (MFV) to a group with less than 7°of forefoot varus (LFV). Objectives: To investigate the effect of forefoot varus on single-limb stance postural stability (PS). Background: Impaired PS has been implicated as a potential risk factor for sustaining acute foot and ankle injuries. The identification of variables that deleteriously affect PS may be important in the prevention of future injuries. Methods and Measures: Postural stability of the MFV group (n = 20) and the LFV group (n = 12) was assessed during right and left single-limb stance and eyes-open and eyes-closed conditions. Standard deviations of the x-axis and y-axis ground reaction forces measured via a force platform were used to represent anteroposterior (AP) and mediolateral (ML) PS, respectively. The mean of 3 successful 5-second trials of each testing condition was calculated and used for subsequent data analysis using 3-way mixed-model ANOVAs with 1 between-subject and 2 within-subject factors. Results: The AP PS scores of the MFV group were significantly greater than those of the LFV group (PϽ.05). ML PS scores, although higher in the MFV group, were not significantly different from those of the LFV group. Both groups had significantly greater AP and ML PS scores during the eyes-closed versus the eyes-open condition (PϽ.05). Conclusions:The results suggest that the presence of greater than or equal to 7°of forefoot varus may significantly impair AP PS. The decreased stability associated with increased forefoot varus may be due to decreased joint congruity and consequently an increased reliance on soft tissue structures for stability.

Six weeks of FO intervention may significantly improve PS in participants with >or=7 degrees of FV both when wearing FOs and when not wearing FOs.

Objective:To examine the effects of external ankle support on vertical ground-reaction forces (VGRF) and kinematic data.Methods:Subjects completed 2 braced and 2 nonbraced 0.61-m hanging drop landings onto a force platform. Kinematic data were collected with 8 digital-optical cameras sampling at 120 Hz.Subjects:12 Division I female volleyball players.Statistical Analysis:A repeated-measures ANOVA with Bonferroni correction (P < .05) was used to determine whether significant differences existed between test conditions for peak VGRF, loading rate, hip angle, knee angle, and ankle angle at right-foot contact for peak 1 and peak 2 of the VGRF curve over the first 100 milliseconds of the landing phase, as well as total hip range of motion (ROM), total knee ROM, and total ankle ROM for the entire landing phase.Results:There were significant increases in peak P1 and LR1 and a significant decrease in ankle-angle change at right-foot contact in braced trials compared with the nonbraced condition.