Gelinne Aaron M, Shelton Andrew D, Franz Jason R
Department of Neurosurgery, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America.
Lampe Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2025 May 23;20(5):e0323307. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0323307. eCollection 2025.
The purpose of this study was to examine the kinematic differences in minimum toe clearance (MTC), a risk factor for falls, between older and younger adults during habitual walking and treadmill-induced slip perturbations.
Data from 28 older adults and 30 younger adults were analyzed for this study. Each subject was fitted with whole-body retroreflective markers for 3D motion capture and walked habitually and while responding to treadmill-induced slip perturbations. Minimum toe clearance and leg joint kinematics were obtained and compared between groups and across conditions.
There was no difference in MTC between age groups during habitual walking (Older: 5.75 ± 1.08 cm, Younger: 5.45 ± 0.93 cm, p = 0.125). Independent of age, MTC increased significantly in response to treadmill-induced slips (p < 0.001). However, significant age × condition interactions revealed that older adults increased MTC significantly less than younger adults in response to treadmill-induced slips. Older adults walked with significantly less knee flexion (31.4 ± 9.9° vs. 41.3 ± 11.9°; p < 0.001) and significantly more hip internal rotation (6.5 ± 6.3° vs. 3.8 ± 6.3°; p = 0.004) than younger adults during slip perturbations.
This study builds on prior work to conclude that, compared to younger adults, older adults appear to have a diminished capacity to instinctively increase MTC during walking in response to slip-like balance perturbations, which may allow them lesser time to accommodate instability.
本研究旨在探讨老年人和年轻人在习惯性行走以及跑步机诱发的滑倒扰动过程中，作为跌倒风险因素的最小足趾间隙（MTC）的运动学差异。
本研究分析了28名老年人和30名年轻人的数据。为每位受试者佩戴全身反光标记以进行三维运动捕捉，并在其习惯性行走以及对跑步机诱发的滑倒扰动做出反应时进行测量。获取并比较了两组之间以及不同条件下的最小足趾间隙和腿部关节运动学数据。
在习惯性行走过程中，不同年龄组之间的MTC没有差异（老年人：5.75±1.08厘米，年轻人：5.45±0.93厘米，p = 0.125）。与年龄无关，MTC在跑步机诱发滑倒时显著增加（p < 0.001）。然而，显著的年龄×条件交互作用表明，在对跑步机诱发的滑倒做出反应时，老年人MTC的增加明显少于年轻人。在滑倒扰动期间，老年人行走时的膝关节屈曲明显较少（31.4±9.9°对41.3±11.9°；p < 0.001），髋关节内旋明显更多（6.5±6.3°对3.8±6.3°；p = 0.004）。
本研究在先前工作的基础上得出结论，与年轻人相比，老年人在行走过程中对类似滑倒的平衡扰动做出本能增加MTC的能力似乎有所下降，这可能使他们适应不稳定的时间更短。
