Middle-age and older runners demonstrate differences in running biomechanics compared with younger runners. Female runners demonstrate differences in running biomechanics compared with males, and females experience hormonal changes during menopause that may also affect age-related changes in running biomechanics. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between age and running biomechanics in healthy female recreational runners. Fifty-two participants (ages 27–65 y) ran on an instrumented treadmill at 2 different self-selected speeds: easy pace and 5 km race pace. Lower-extremity kinematic and kinetic variables were calculated from 14 consecutive strides. Linear regression was used to determine the relationship between age and lower-extremity running biomechanics, controlling for self-selected running speed. There was a negative relationship between age and easy pace (R = −.49, P < .001) and age and 5 km race pace (R = −.43, P = .001). After controlling for self-selected running speed, there were no significant relationships between age and running biomechanics for either running speed. Several biomechanical variables were moderately to strongly correlated with running speed. Running speed should be considered when investigating age-related differences in running biomechanics.
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Relationship of Age and Running Biomechanics in Female Recreational Runners
Heather M. Hamilton, Hunter J. Bennett, Mira Mariano, and Rumit Singh Kakar
What Is in a Name? Depression and Anxiety Symptoms in Collegiate Athletes With and Without a History of Concussion
Hilary S. Dunbar, Catherine C. Donahue, Luzita Vela, Jason Freeman, and Jacob E. Resch
Context: Athletes with a history of concussion (CON) have been demonstrated to have heightened levels of anxiety and depression that may continue well beyond the resolution of concussion symptoms. The global events of 2020 resulted in elevated levels of anxiety and depression in the general population, which may have unequally presented in collegiate athletes with (CON) than those without a history of concussion (NoCON). Using a deception design, our survey-based study compared levels of anxiety and depression in CON and NoCON collegiate athletes in response to the pandemic and social injustices. We hypothesized that the CON group would have significantly elevated anxiety and depression as compared to the NoCON group in response to events of 2020.
Design and Methods: Collegiate athletes (N = 106) during the academic 2020–2021 academic year were divided into CON and NoCON groups based on their preinjury (baseline) concussion assessment. Participants completed the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SSRS), Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-7 (GAD-7) via an electronic survey pertaining to the events of 2020. The term “concussion” was not used in any study materials which was the basis for our deception-based design. An analysis of covariance was used to compare group CES-D and GAD-7 outcome scores while controlling for the SSRS outcome score.
Results: Our survey response rate was 14.2% (48/337 [77.1% female]) and 10.1% (58/580 [67.2% female]), for the NoCON and CON groups, respectively. The NoCON group had significantly (F
1 = 5.82, P = .018,
Erratum. A Faster Walking Speed Is Important for Improving Biomechanical Function and Walking Performance in Stroke Survivors
Journal of Applied Biomechanics
A Faster Walking Speed Is Important for Improving Biomechanical Function and Walking Performance in Stroke Survivors
Hannah L. Jarvis, Philip Nagy, and Neil D. Reeves
This study compares joint kinematics and kinetics of young stroke survivors who walk <0.79 m/s (slow) or >0.80 m/s (fast) with reference to a healthy able-bodied group and provides clinical recommendations for guiding the gait rehabilitation of stroke survivors. Twenty-two young stroke survivors (18–55 y) were recruited from 6 hospital sites in the United Kingdom. Stroke participants were classified by walking speed as slow (<0.79) or fast (>0.80 m/s), and joint kinematics and kinetics at the pelvis, hip, knee, and ankle were measured during walking on level ground at self-selected speed. Ten walking biomechanical parameters correlated to walking speed (ρ ≥ .550). Stroke survivors in the slow group walked with significantly greater range of sagittal plane pelvic motion (P < .009), reduced range of hip adduction and abduction (P < .011), and smaller peak hip extension angle (P < .011) and hip flexion moment (P < .029) for the paretic limb. For the nonparetic limb, a significantly reduced hip flexion moment (P < .040) was observed compared with the fast group and control. We are the first to report how biomechanical function during walking is compromised in young stroke survivors classified by walking speed as slow (<0.79 m/s) or fast (>0.80 m/s) and propose that these biomechanical parameters be used to inform rehabilitation programs to improve walking for stroke survivors.
Codesigning a Home-Based Exercise Program With and for People With Visual Impairments: A Needs Assessment
Soyoung Choi, Junchi Chen, Emerson Sebastião, Susan Aguiñaga, and Justin Haegele
This needs-assessment study evaluated the physical activity levels, needs, preferences, and requirements for exercise among individuals with visual impairments, aiming to establish evidence for the codesign of a subsequent home-based exercise program. The questionnaire, comprising 35 questions, was developed by a research team of disability and adapted physical activity experts. It was implemented for the online survey, collecting data from 145 adults with severe low vision and blindness between January 15 and January 29, 2024. Descriptive statistical analysis and content analysis were employed. Seventy-five participants (62.5%) were classified as overweight or obese, and only 15 participants reported engaging in the recommended levels of physical activity. Regarding the requirements for future home-based exercise programs, seven themes were identified: accessibility, nonvisual learning support, safety management, personalization, motivation, education, and technology. The results emphasized the urgent need for adapted home-based exercise programs that align with individuals’ specific health conditions and abilities.
Effects of Different Inertial Measurement Unit Sensor-to-Segment Calibrations on Clinical 3-Dimensional Humerothoracic Joint Angles Estimation
Alessandro Bonfiglio, Elisabetta Farella, David Tacconi, and Raoul M. Bongers
Calibrating inertial measurement units (IMUs) involves converting orientation data from a local reference frame into a clinically meaningful reference system. Several solutions exist but little work has been done to compare different calibration methods with each other and an optical motion capture system. Thirteen healthy subjects with no signs of upper limb injury were recruited for this study and instrumented with IMU sensors and optical markers. Three IMU calibration methods were compared: N-pose calibration, functional calibration, and manual alignment. Subjects executed simple single-plane single-joint tasks for each upper limb joint as well as more complex multijoint tasks. We performed a 3-way analysis of variance on range of motion error, root mean squared error, and offset to assess differences between calibrations, tasks, and anatomical axes. Differences in the 3 IMU calibrations are minor and not statistically significant for most tasks and anatomical axes, with the exception of the offset interaction calibration × axes (P < .001,
Erratum. Effects of Different Inertial Measurement Unit Sensor-to-Segment Calibrations on Clinical 3-Dimensional Humerothoracic Joint Angles Estimation
Journal of Applied Biomechanics
Short-Term Changes of Anxiety in Adolescent Female Athletes
Julie A. Young, Catherine C. Quatman-Yates, Drew Mohr, Catherine Butz, Katherine E. Allison, James A. Onate, and Amy E. Valasek
Anxiety is common in adolescents but short-term changes in anxiety have not been studied. The purpose of this observational study was to describe how anxiety changes in high school female athletes over 16 weeks. Participants completed the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) every other week. We categorized participants as elevated if their GAD-7 score was >9 and a score change of ≥4 classified those with clinically meaningful anxiety change. Of the 28 participants, 30% reported elevated GAD-7 scores at least once and 80% reported anxiety changes ≥4. Athletic trainers are poised to monitor anxiety and can promote optimal mental health by referring those with elevated GAD-7 scores for timely intervention.
The Association Between Lower Limb Joint Position Sense and Different Aspects of Gait Pattern in Individuals With Bilateral Knee Osteoarthritis
Mohadeseh Sarvestani, Neda Orakifar, Razieh Mofateh, Maryam Seyedtabib, Mehrnoosh Karimi, and Mohammad Mehravar
Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) can have more pronounced effects on joint position sense (JPS) accuracy and gait characteristics. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between lower limb JPS and different aspects of gait pattern including gait asymmetry and variability and spatiotemporal coordination in individuals with bilateral KOA. In this cross-sectional study, lower limb JPS of 43 individuals with bilateral KOA (mild and moderate) were measured. Participants’ gait patterns during treadmill walking with self-selected comfortable speed were assessed. The correlations between JPS errors and gait parameters of limb with moderate KOA were analyzed. Positive relationships were found between stance time symmetry index and JPS errors of hip abduction (r = .46, P = .003), ankle plantar flexion (r = .33, P = .03), and ankle dorsiflexion (r = .33, P = .03). Positive relationship was found between single limb support time symmetry index and hip abduction JPS error (r = .41, P = .008). Significant negative associations were found between coefficient of variation of step length and JPS errors of knee extension (r = .47, P = .002) and ankle plantar flexion (r = .33, P = .003). Results did not show any significant relationship between lower limb JPS errors and walk ratio. It is likely that lower limb JPS deficits are partially responsible for some changes in gait patterns observed in individuals with bilateral KOA.
The Effect of Shoe Insole Stiffness Modifications on Walking Performance in Older Adults: A Feasibility Study
Logan T. White, Philippe Malcolm, Jason R. Franz, and Kota Z. Takahashi
Shoes or insoles embedded with carbon fiber materials to increase longitudinal stiffness have been shown to enhance running and walking performance in elite runners, and younger adults, respectively. It is unclear, however, if such stiffness modifications can translate to enhanced mobility in older adults who typically walk with greater metabolic cost of transport compared to younger adults. Here, we sought to test whether adding footwear stiffness via carbon fiber insoles could improve walking outcomes (eg, distance traveled and metabolic cost of transport) in older adults during the 6-minute walk test. 20 older adults (10 M/10 F; 75.95 [6.01] y) performed 6-minute walk tests in 3 different shoe/insole stiffnesses (low, medium, and high) and their own footwear (4 total conditions). We also evaluated participants’ toe flexor strength and passive foot compliance to identify subject-specific factors that influence performance from added shoe/insole stiffnesses. We found no significant group differences in distance traveled or net metabolic cost of transport (P ≥ .171). However, weaker toe flexors were associated with greater improvement in distance traveled between the medium and low stiffness conditions (P = .033, r = −.478), indicating that individual foot characteristics may help identify potential candidates for interventions involving footwear stiffness modifications.