The effect of lower extremity movement on ground reaction force during walking in the elderly

Abstract

[Purpose] This study examined the effect of hip, knee, and ankle joint movement on the production of anterior-posterior ground reaction force impulses during walking by elderly individuals. [Subjects] The subjects were forty elderly people and 40 younger people. [Method] Gait analyses involved measurement of the anterior-posterior ground reaction force impulses as well as measurements of hip, knee, and ankle joint movement. [Result] Only knee joint movement was related to the anterior-posterior ground reaction force impulses in elderly men, whereas hip, knee, and ankle joint movements were related to the generation of these force impulses in younger men. Knee and ankle joint movements were related to production of these force impulses in both elderly and younger women. [Conclusion] Our results suggest that the elderly use knee joint movement to produce anterior-posterior ground reaction force impulses during walking.