Musculoskeletal System Commons^™

Impact Of Parity On Gait Biomechanics, Bekah P. Stein

Masters Theses

Background: Symptomatic knee osteoarthritis (OA) is an incurable condition that affects nearly 50% of adults, and women are twice as likely as men to develop OA. Throughout pregnancy, women experience large changes in morphology and gait mechanics, as well as changes in joint loading. It is possible these adaptations could cause lasting changes postpartum, which may potentially contribute to initiation of OA, thereby increasing the overall risk of OA for women.

Purpose: This exploratory study looked to identify differences between lower limb gait mechanics of healthy nulliparous women and healthy parous women.

Methods: 28 healthy female participants (14 parous, 14 …

Variability And Stability Of 13 To 19 Month Olds Infants' Gait Affect By Wet And Dry Diaper And Underwear, Sally Marie Futch

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research has been conducted on the effect of diaper perturbation versus unclothed on gait, but there is little research on different diaper perturbations on gait. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine how physical perturbations (dry and wet diaper and underwear) affected 13 to 19 month old infant’s gait. METHODS: Sixty infants (13-19 month old) were recruited for the study. Five trials for 3 conditions (dry and wet diaper and underwear) were conducted on a GaitRite walkway. Step length (m/step), cadence (steps/s), support base (m) and stance time (sec) were analyzed. A mixed model with repeated measures along …