Kinetic analysis of tandem gait on a sine-wave-shaped walkway

Abstract

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to ascertain the kinetic characteristics on a horizontal plane, including knee joint rotation, when performing tandem gait on a sine-wave walkway. [Participants and Methods] The participants were 10 healthy adults. The movement task included tandem gait on a sine-wave walkway. The instruments used were an electromyograph and a three-dimensional motion analysis system. Regarding data analysis, we determined the knee joint rotation angle and muscle activity of the biceps femoris and semitendinosus muscle. [Results] The knee joint rotation angle range was 48.1 ± 6.7°. Two strategies were confirmed with regard to the direction of knee joint rotation: a case in which the agonist muscle acts actively and a case in which the antagonist muscle acts passively. [Conclusion] It has been suggested that the knee joint rotational angle and muscular activity of the rotator muscle group are important for tandem gait on a sine-wave-shaped walking path.