Osteoarthritic gait dynamics from force-plate measurements.

A method is presented for calculating the displacement of the centre of body mass in lateral, horizontal and vertical directions during pathological gait; evaluations are made from measurements obtained by a single pair of small force plates. Results are presented for pre- and postoperative gait for 42 patients who, initially suffering from osteoarthritis of the hip, have had total hip placements. The method is shown to be more convenient, more direct and less expensive than techniques in present use.