Gait in Patients with COPD is Mainly Affected in Proximal Musculature
Conference: American Society of Biomechanics
Abstract: The effects of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are not limited to the lung. Patients with COPD exhibit abnormalities in structure and function of skeletal muscle tissue. We hypothesized that the abnormalities in skeletal muscle tissue lead to changes in gait patterns in patients with COPD. Twenty subjects walked at their self-selected pace while kinematics and kinetics were recorded. All subjects underwent a rest condition, a minimum of one minute rest between each trial. Patients with COPD then underwent a treadmill protocol to induce fatigue. Subjects repeated walkover trials with no rest between trials. Group means were compared using independent and dependent t-tests. Peak hip extension moment was significantly increased in patients with COPD as compared to healthy controls in the rest condition. Hip extension moment was significantly increased in patients with COPD as compared to healthy controls in the fatigue condition. No significant differences were found for the rest vs. fatigue condition. The peak hip extension moment was the only parameter to demonstrate significant differences. This may not be due to the changes in skeletal muscle structure and function. It is possible that the subjects with COPD walked with a forward trunk inclination as compared to controls. The peak hip extension moment was not significantly different within the patients with COPD from rest to fatigue condition. The gait abnormalities in patients with COPD are present even when the subject is well rested. Another reason for lack of significant differences between the two conditions could have been our fatigue protocol.
Listed In: Biomechanics, Gait,
Tagged In: COPD, joint moments, locomotion
This poster was submitted for a scholarship
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Abstract: The effects of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are not limited to the lung. Patients with COPD exhibit abnormalities in structure and function of skeletal muscle tissue. We hypothesized that the abnormalities in skeletal muscle tissue lead to changes in gait patterns in patients with COPD. Twenty subjects walked at their self-selected pace while kinematics and kinetics were recorded. All subjects underwent a rest condition, a minimum of one minute rest between each trial. Patients with COPD then underwent a treadmill protocol to induce fatigue. Subjects repeated walkover trials with no rest between trials. Group means were compared using independent and dependent t-tests. Peak hip extension moment was significantly increased in patients with COPD as compared to healthy controls in the rest condition. Hip extension moment was significantly increased in patients with COPD as compared to healthy controls in the fatigue condition. No significant differences were found for the rest vs. fatigue condition. The peak hip extension moment was the only parameter to demonstrate significant differences. This may not be due to the changes in skeletal muscle structure and function. It is possible that the subjects with COPD walked with a forward trunk inclination as compared to controls. The peak hip extension moment was not significantly different within the patients with COPD from rest to fatigue condition. The gait abnormalities in patients with COPD are present even when the subject is well rested. Another reason for lack of significant differences between the two conditions could have been our fatigue protocol.
Listed In: Biomechanics, Gait,
Tagged In: COPD, joint moments, locomotion
This poster was submitted for a scholarship
View PDF | Contact Author