Intra-limb and muscular coordination during walking on slopes.
Eur J Appl Physiol
; 120(8): 1841-1854, 2020 Aug.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-32524225
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE:
Intra-limb and muscular coordination during gait are the result of the organisation of the neuromuscular system, which have been widely studied on a flat terrain. Environmental factors, such as the inclination of the terrain, is a challenge for the postural control system to maintain balance. Therefore, we hypothesised that the central nervous system flexibly modifies its control strategies during locomotion on slopes.METHODS:
Ten subjects walked on an inclined treadmill at different slopes (from - 9° to + 9°) and speeds (from 0.56 to 2.22 m s-1). Intra-limb coordination was investigated via the Continuous Relative Phase, whereas muscular coordination was investigated by decomposing the coordinated muscle activation profiles into Basic Activation Patterns.RESULTS:
A greater stride to stride variability of kinematics was observed during walking on slopes, as compared to walking on the level. On positive slopes, the stride period and width present a greater variability without modification of the time-pattern of the muscular activation and of the variability of intersegmental coordination. On negative slopes, the stride width is larger, the variability of the stride period and of the inter-segmental coordination is greater and the basic activation patterns become broader, especially at slow speeds.CONCLUSION:
Our findings suggest that the control strategy of downhill walking corresponds to a more conservative gait pattern, which could be adopted to lower the risk of falling at the cost of a greater energy consumption. In uphill walking, where metabolic demands are high, the strategy adopted may be planned to minimise energy expenditure.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Músculo Esquelético
/
Extremidades
/
Marcha
Limite:
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Eur J Appl Physiol
Assunto da revista:
FISIOLOGIA
Ano de publicação:
2020
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Bélgica