Article

The external knee adduction moment (KAM) is a useful proxy for medial knee
loading. Though many studies examining the KAM report the peak value, recent
studies have evaluated other measures from this waveform, including the stance
impulse. It is important to understand the impact of varying gait speed on
discrete values of the KAM waveform when evaluating differences between samples.
The purpose of this study was to compare measures of the KAM waveform, including
peak and impulse, during level walking at different speeds. Thirty-two healthy
participants (mean age=32+/-8 years, 18 women) were recruited. The KAM peak and
impulse were calculated over three ambulation speeds: self-selected, slow (15%
slower than self-selected) and fast (15% faster than self-selected). To identify
differences between these conditions, a one-way repeated measures analysis of
variance was utilized. The peak KAM was greater in the fast compared to the slow
condition (p<0.05). The KAM impulse was greater in the slow compared to both
self-selected and fast conditions (p<0.05). The KAM impulse appeared more
sensitive to changes in gait speed because the impulse reflects the duration of
loading. These findings highlight that slowed gait speed increased loading
exposure on the medial knee tissues, though the maximum magnitude of the exposure
was reduced. This trade-off between the increase in duration and decrease in
amplitude at slower gait speeds should be examined, particularly where loading
exposure may lead to pathology, such as knee osteoarthritis.

Langue : ANGLAIS