Biomedical subjects

Ava D Segal

Publications and source records attributed to Ava D Segal.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Does having a computerized prosthetic knee influence cognitive performance during amputee walking?

OBJECTIVE: To compare objective cognitive performance and perception of cognitive burden during walking tasks using 2 different prosthetic knees: a computerized hydraulic knee (Otto Bock C-leg) and a noncomputerized hydraulic knee (Ossur Mauch SNS). DESIGN: Two-group crossover trial, with participants randomly assigned to order of prosthesis. Participants completed assessments under 2 conditions, a self-selected speed walk and a controlled speed walk, on 2 separate occasions (precrossover, postcrossover). SETTING: Veterans Health Administration hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Eight transfemoral amputees. INTERVENTION: Computerized versus noncomputerized prosthetic knee. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Objective cognitive performance measures included verbal fluency (Controlled Oral Word Association Test, Category Test), attention and working memory (serial subtraction), and walking speed during cognitive tasks. Measures of perceived cognitive burden included subjective attentional requirements of walking and cognitive tasks and subjective general cognitive burden of prosthesis. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in objective cognitive performance on any task between prostheses, nor did walking speed vary by prosthesis during the free-speed walk. Participants reported that walking required less attention while wearing the C-leg and that the C-leg was less of a cognitive burden than the noncomputerized prosthesis. CONCLUSIONS: In nondemanding walking conditions with experienced amputees, participants reported that the more costly C-leg required less cognitive attention than the noncomputerized knee. However, this subjective experience did not translate to improved performance on neuropsychologic screening instruments or on walking speed. Noncomputerized prostheses may be adequate for a majority of amputees, and further research is needed to identify particular groups of amputees (ie, new amputees, amputees with complex physical or cognitive demands) who may benefit from computerized prostheses.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

The kinematics and kinetics of turning: limb asymmetries associated with walking a circular path.

The biomechanics of changing direction while walking has been largely neglected despite its obvious relevancy to functional mobility. The world is filled with turns that must be negotiated. These turns carry an increased risk of injury due to a decrease in stability. A VICON 612 system measured joint kinematics and kinetics on 10 normal subjects for straight line walking (ST); turning, inside foot strike (IN); and turning, outside foot strike (OUT). All trials were completed at a self-selected walking speed and across a range of speeds from 0.6 to 1.3 m/s; the turn radius was 1 m. Significant differences between the conditions were detected using a mixed effects repeated measures ANCOVA with walking speed as a covariate. The most pronounced differences were demonstrated in the mediolateral ground reaction force impulse: in straight walking the impulses tended to shift the body toward the contralateral limb. In turning, the IN and OUT impulses shifted the body toward the ipsilateral and contralateral limbs, respectively. Knee flexion during stance was increased on the IN limb, while ankle plantarflexion increased on the OUT limb consistent with body lean during turning; differences in joint kinetics during turning were negligible. Self-selected turning was significantly slower than walking straight ahead (0.96+/-0.12 m/s versus 1.61+/-0.22 m/s) and turning at very slow speeds showed a non-uniform center of mass trajectory. Understanding the mechanisms of turning will provide insights driving design, therapy and intervention to increase functional navigation in amputees, the elderly and individuals with neuromuscular pathologies.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Triceps surae force, length and velocity during walking.

Individuals with neuromuscular conditions may develop muscle contractures that limit joint motion. Decreased muscle length is clinically obvious, but deviations in other functional characteristics of muscle, such as underlying weakness or decreased shortening velocity are more obscure. Therefore, a more comprehensive assessment of muscle characteristics may be required to fully restore function in these individuals. To provide normative comparison data on the force, length and velocity of the triceps surae during walking, 20 adults free from neuromuscular and orthopedic problems were assessed using instrumented gait analysis. Kinematic and kinetic data were used to calculate gastrocnemius and soleus length and velocity, and plantarflexor force during walking. Gastrocnemius length was shortest in early swing and longest in terminal swing and again in midstance. Soleus length was longest throughout the period of single limb stance and was shortest at foot-off. Gastrocnemius shortening velocity was greatest in early swing phase whereas soleus shortening velocity was greatest in pre-swing. Plantarflexor force increased steadily throughout stance phase and peaked in terminal stance at 33.8+/-3.6 N/kg bodyweight. These data provide target levels on the functional parameters of plantarflexor force, length and velocity in order that therapeutic and surgical interventions could be focused on the deviations observed, and the outcomes of these interventions more objectively assessed.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Heel-region properties of prosthetic feet and shoes.

The properties of the prosthetic components prescribed to amputees have the potential to ameliorate or exacerbate their comfort, mobility, and health. To measure the difference in heel-region structural properties of currently available prosthetic feet and shoes, we simulated the period of initial heel-ground contact with a pendulum apparatus. The energy dissipation capacity of the various prosthetic feet ranged from 33.6% to 52.6% of the input energy. Donning a shoe had a large effect. Energy dissipation of a Seattle Lightfoot 2 prosthetic foot was 45.3%, while addition of a walking, running, and orthopedic shoe increased energy dissipation to 63.0%, 73.0%, and 82.4%, respectively. The force versus deformation response to impact was modeled as a hardening spring in parallel with a position-dependent damping element. A nonlinear least-squares curve fit produced model coefficients useful for predicting the heel-region impact response of both prosthetic feet and shoes.

Amputation, Surgical↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The effect of walking speed on center of mass displacement.

The movement of the center of mass (COM) during human walking has been hypothesized to follow a sinusoidal pattern in the vertical and mediolateral directions. The vertical COM displacement has been shown to increase with velocity, but little is known about the mediolateral movement of the COM. In our evaluation of the mediolateral COM displacement at several walking speeds, 10 normal subjects walked at their self-selected speed and then at 0.7, 1.0, 1.2, and 1.6 m/s in random order. We calculated COM location from a 15-segment, full-body kinematic model using segmental analysis. Mediolateral COM displacement was 6.99 +/- 1.34 cm at the slowest walking speed and decreased to 3.85 +/- 1.41 cm at the fastest speed (p < 0.05). Vertical COM excursion increased from 2.74 +/- 0.52 at the slowest speed to 4.83 +/- 0.92 at the fastest speed (p < 0.05). The data suggest that the relationship between the vertical and mediolateral COM excursions changes substantially with walking speed. Clinicians who use observational gait analysis to assess walking problems should be aware that even normal individuals show significant mediolateral COM displacement at slow speeds. Excessive vertical COM displacement that is obvious at moderate walking speeds may be masked at slow walking speeds.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Gait efficiency using the C-Leg.

Microprocessor-controlled prosthetic knees are claimed to improve gait efficiency in transfemoral (TF) amputees. This hypothesis was tested in a prospective randomized crossover trial that compared the Mauch SNS knee and the C-Leg microprocessor-controlled knee in eight TF amputees. The subjects were given a 3-month acclimation period in each knee. Then, their net oxygen cost (mL/kg/m) was measured while they walked overground at four speeds in random order: 0.8 m/s, 1.0 m/s, 1.3 m/s, and self-selected walking speed (SSWS). The C-Leg caused small reductions in net oxygen cost that were not statistically significant compared with the Mauch SNS at any of the walking speeds (p > 0.190). Subjects chose higher SSWSs with the C-Leg compared with the Mauch SNS (mean +/- standard deviation = 1.31 +/- 0.12 m/s vs 1.21 +/- 0.10 m/s, respectively, p = 0.046) but did not incur higher oxygen costs (p = 0.270), which suggests greater efficiency only at their SSWS.

Adult↗