Influence of Post-Stroke Gait on Bone Density

Principal Investigator: Gary S. Beaupré, PhD

Co-Investigators: Lise C. Worthen, MS; C. Maria Kim, MSc, PT; Henry L. Lew, MD, PhD; and B. Jenny Kiratli, PhD

The underlying hypothesis for this study is that the changes in habitual skeletal loading following stroke are responsible for the observed changes in bone density. This hypothesis provides the motivation for a number of key questions, the answers to which are important for improving our understanding of stroke-related osteoporosis and for providing a theoretical basis for potential rehabilitation interventions and goals. In the proposed study we will use experimental and computational approaches to answer the following key questions:

• What are the experimentally determined relationships between measured gait parameters and bone mineral density at the hip on the affected and non-affected sides?

• How well can computer models predict bone density in stroke patients as a function of their average daily physical activity and ground reaction force measured with gait analysis?

Milestones

• Gait testing and bone density measurements have been completed for all subjects.
• Results have been reported in three journal articles.

Publications

Worthen LC, Kim CM, Kautz SA, Lew HL, Kiratli BJ, and Beaupré GS: Key Characteristics of Walking Correlate with Bone Density in Individuals with Chronic Stroke. J Rehabil Res Dev, 42(6):761-768, 2005.

Bowden MG, Balasubramanian CK, Neptune RR, and Kautz SA. Anterior-posterior ground reaction forces as a measure of paretic leg contribution in hemiparetic walking. Stroke, 37(3):872-6, 2006.

Balasubramanian CK, Bowden MG, Neptune RR, and Kautz SA. Relationship between step length asymmetry and walking performance in subjects with chronic hemiparesis. Arch Phys Med Rehabil, 88(1):43-9, 2007.

Funding Source: Unfunded