Clinical Interventions in Aging (Dec 2019)
Kinematic on Ankle and Knee Joint of Post-Stroke Elderly Patients by Wearing Newly Elastic Band-Type Ankle–Foot Orthosis in Gait
Abstract
Jong Hyun Kim, Byeong Hee Won Biomedical System & Technology Group, Korea Institute of Industrial Technology, Cheonan, Chungnam, South KoreaCorrespondence: Byeong Hee WonBiomedical System & Technology Group, Korea Institute of Industrial Technology, 89, Yangdaegiro-gil, Ipjang-myeon, Seobuk-gu, Cheonan-si, Chungcheongnam-do 331-822, South KoreaTel +82-10-3731-8090Fax +82-505-731-8091Email [email protected]: The post-stroke elderly was increased caused by increasing stroke and advanced medical. However, ankle–foot orthoses (AFOs) can be uncomfortable for hemiplegic patients; therefore, the usability is not good. In this study, we analyzed ankle and knee joint angles in post-stroke elderly patients to assess the functional effectiveness (specifically prevention of back knee and drop-foot) of a new elastic band-type AFO (New Product: NP) during gait.Patients and methods: Nine elderly post-stroke patients (eight males, one female; 55.7±8.4 years; 165.8±9.2 cm; 68.8±11.5 kg; five with right hemiplegia, four with left hemiplegia; onset period: 6.6 years) were selected for participation in this study. We captured gait motion using 12 cameras (MX-T20, Vicon, Inc., Oxford, UK) under three different conditions [wearing nothing (WI), using existing ordinary AFOs made from hard plastic material (EP), and using NP]. The angle variation and maximum–minimum angle of the lower body joints were analyzed during dorsi-plantar flexion of the ankle joint and flexion–extension of knee joint. A one-way ANOVA test for multiple comparisons was performed, followed by a Tukey’s b test to identify statistical significance, which was set at 0.005.Results: Regarding the ankle joint, the maximum plantar flexion (drop-foot) value decreased with the NP, and the maximum dorsiflexion value increased. Regarding the knee joint, the maximum extension (back knee) value decreased, and the maximum flexion value increased (p < 0.005).Conclusion: Using analysis of the kinematics of the ankles and knees during walking, this research confirmed the effectiveness of the NP, an elastic band-type AFO, for use in ordinary post-stroke elderly patients.Keywords: hemiplegia, gait motion, back knee, drop-foot, dorsiflexion, extension
