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Updated: Dec 25, 2025
Asymmetric Walkway: A Novel Behavioral Assay for Studying Asymmetric Locomotion
Published on: January 15, 2016
Muscle capacity to accelerate the body during gait varies with foot position in cerebral palsy
Amy K Hegarty1, Max J Kurz2, Wayne Stuberg2
1Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO, 80401, United States.
Insights
Children with cerebral palsy (CP) exhibit altered gait, impacting muscle capacity. Tibial torsion affects the body
Area of Science:
- Biomechanics
- Pediatric Orthopedics
- Neurorehabilitation
Background:
- Children with cerebral palsy (CP) often display atypical gait patterns.
- While sagittal plane deviations are well-studied, transverse plane kinematic alterations are also prevalent in CP gait.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how altered skeletal alignment and kinematic deviations influence muscle capacity to accelerate the body during gait in children with CP.
Main Methods:
- Three-dimensional gait analysis was performed on 18 children with spastic CP (GMFCS level II).
- Musculoskeletal models incorporated tibial torsion measurements.
- Induced acceleration analysis evaluated muscle capacity to accelerate the body's center of mass.
Main Results:
- Externally rotated postures demonstrated a reduced capacity to accelerate the body's center of mass compared to internally rotated postures.
- Both skeletal alignment and compensatory kinematics influenced muscle capacity.
Conclusions:
- Altered transverse plane skeletal alignment and compensatory kinematics are critical factors in the gait of children with CP.
- These factors should be considered in surgical interventions for children with CP.
Background:
Children with cerebral palsy (CP) often have altered gait patterns compared to their typically developing peers. These gait patterns are characterized based on sagittal plane kinematic deviations; however, many children with CP also walk with altered transverse plane kinematics.
Research Question:
How do both altered skeletal alignment and kinematic deviations affect muscles' capacity to accelerate the body during gait?
Methods:
A three-dimensional gait analysis was completed for 18 children with spastic CP (12.5 ± 2.9 years; GMFCS level II). Musculoskeletal models were developed for each participant, and tibial torsion, measured during a static standing trial and assessed using motion capture, was incorporated. An induced acceleration analysis was performed to evaluate the capacity of muscles to accelerate the body center of mass throughout stance. Differences between the root-mean-square muscle capacity for children with CP walking with internally rotated, standard, and externally rotated postures were evaluated.
Results:
Externally rotated postures resulted in a lower capacity to accelerate the body center of mass compared with internally rotated postures. Both changes in skeletal alignment and kinematics contributed to changes in muscle capacity to accelerate the body.
Significance:
Altered transverse plane skeletal alignment and compensatory kinematics should both be considered in surgical treatment of children with CP.
