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Updated: Oct 2, 2025
Postural Organization of Gait Initiation for Biomechanical Analysis Using Force Platform Recordings
Published on: July 26, 2022
Goal-oriented locomotion in children with spastic diplegia: Anticipatory orienting strategies and trajectory
Alexander Castilla1,2,3, Alain Berthoz3, Giovanni Cioni4,5
1Laboratoire de Psychologie du Développement et de l'Éducation de l'Enfant (LaPsyDÉ), Université Paris Cité, Paris, France.
Abstract:
Goal-oriented locomotion (GOL) is a complex task integrating navigation and gait control. To our knowledge, this is the first study of GOL in subjects with Cerebral Palsy (CP). Thirteen subjects with spastic diplegia and 26 with typical development were enrolled in the study. Subjects performed a GOL task to reach luminous targets. Within-subject trajectory variability, maximal head deviation from trajectory and mean head anticipation over trajectory were analyzed. While all subjects showed gait impairment, only 8 of 13 subjects also showed navigation abnormalities as revealed by either: a) abnormal head orientation and trajectory formation, or b) abnormal head orientation with normal trajectory formation. Abnormal gait patterns do not account for and can be distinguished from navigation disorders in spastic diplegic CP. This distinction has important implications for novel rehabilitation methods that should specifically address navigation, not only gait.
