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Updated: Apr 25, 2026
Gait Analysis of Age-dependent Motor Impairments in Mice with Neurodegeneration
Published on: June 18, 2018
Gait analysis of children with neurodevelopmental disorders using gait profile score
Kazushi Takahashi1, Masafumi Mizukami2, Kenichi Yoshikawa1
1Institute of Systems and information Engineering, University of Tsukuba, Japan.
Background:
Neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) are a group of disorders that become evident early in development. Recently, gait disorders in NDDs have been the focus of increasing attention; however, no unified view has been attained. Gait Profile Score (GPS) is an index that combines three-dimensional gait analysis (3DGA) data into a single numerical value. This study aimed to characterize gait disorders in children with NDD using GPS.
Methods:
Children aged 5-15 years with various NDDs were included in this study. The reference group included children with the same conditions as those with typical development (TD). Participants walked along a 14-m walking path at a self-selection speed, and gait data were assessed using Internal Measurement Unit-based 3DGA to calculate the GPS and Gait Variable Scores (GVS).
Results:
GPS was significantly higher in the NDD group than in the reference group. Additionally, the GVS of each joint was significantly greater in the NDD group for right ankle dorsiflexion and plantar flexion. Furthermore, the right ankle kinematic curve during the gait cycle revealed that the children with NDD demonstrated greater plantar flexion during the swing phase than the reference group.
Conclusion:
GPS revealed substantial differences between children with TD and those with NDD. The difference in GPS between children with TD and those with NDD was extremely small. GPS use allowed us to quantify small differences in gait patterns between children with NDD and those with TD. Furthermore, the gait pattern of children with NDD was characterized by dorsiflexion and plantar flexion of the ankle joints.
