Contribution of muscle activity at different gait phases for improving walking performance in chronic stroke patients with hemiparesis

Abstract

[Purpose] The aim of this study was to clarify the optimal timing for increasing muscle activity in the paralyzed lower limb of stroke survivors by evaluating the relationship between gait muscle activity patterns and gait parameters. [Participants and Methods] Electromyography of the tibialis anterior, soleus, rectus femoris, and biceps femoris on the paralyzed side and spatiotemporal gait parameters were evaluated in 40 chronic post-stroke patients as they walked at a comfortable speed. The normalized average amplitude and asymmetry indexes of each gait phase were calculated. The correlations between gait velocity or asymmetry indexes and the activity amplitudes of various muscles during each gait phase were analyzed. Multiple regression analysis was performed with gait velocity or asymmetry indexes as the response variable and the muscle activity amplitudes in the various gait phases as explanatory variables. [Results] The major determinants of gait velocity were the tibialis anterior activity (β=−0.35) and biceps femoris activity (β=0.45) during the swing phase. In addition, the biceps femoris activity during the swing phase was the major determinant of the asymmetry index for the swing phase duration (β=−0.41). [Conclusion] For patients with hemiparesis, increasing the biceps femoris activity during the swing phase is considered optimal, which may lead to improvement in walking performance.

Correlation Between Joint Position Sense, Threshold To Detection of Passive Motion of The Knee Joint And Walking Speed of Post-Stroke Patient

“…The knee muscle contraction has eccentric contractions and concentric contractions in certain gait phases (Kerrigan dan Edelstein, 2001). There is not clear what contributes to the decreased ability to walk after a stroke (Flansbjer, 2006;Fujita et al, 2018).…”

Kinetic Gait Changes after Robotic Exoskeleton Training in Adolescents and Young Adults with Acquired Brain Injury

“…Therefore, any nonlinearity would result in decreased momentum and slower load transfer during gait, leading to a disruption in forward progression. ABI patients with hemiplegia often present with reduced hip flexion, dorsiflexion, and plantarflexion during the initial loading phase due to muscle paresis [11,31]. This results in the tibia not rolling forward over the calcanium, which is observed as non-linearity, to complete the transfer of the body weight from the contralateral limb [11].…”

Prediction of Gait Kinematics and Kinetics: A Systematic Review of EMG and EEG Signal Use and Their Contribution to Prediction Accuracy

“…A systematic review by Kolaghassi et al [23], focussed on continuous variable prediction only, identified a similar bias in the scientific literature where 72% of studies predicted angle joints and only 28% predicted torque and moment joints. The majority of studies employing EMG only to predict movement measured lower-limb muscle groups of RF and VL, two muscles that are highly active during gait [74,75]. Both muscles extend the knee joint.…”