Gait stability and aging

Abstract

Stability is an important concept in biomechanics. It means that a mechanical system in equilibrium should resist changing its motion properties after an external perturbation. Gait is one of the most common ways of locomotion in humans. Walking is a motor action achieved by interaction of the nervous system, muscles, joints, and bones with the environment and its external forces. Moreover, several unhealthy conditions are prone to change how people walk. Therefore, the comprehension of how someone deals with an external perturbation to maintain its walking pattern, i.e., how to control the body to keep it stable during walking, is important. The aim of this chapter is to describe the tools to evaluate the stability on walking, the main concerns to apply those tools and concepts of dynamical systems in gait analysis, and how the most common biomechanical variables applied on gait analysis should be prepared for that.