Towards a Methodology for the Differential Analysis in Human Locomotion: A Pilot Study on the Participation of Individuals with Multiple Sclerosis

Huiying Yu, Thompson Sarkodie-Gyan

Department of Electrical Engineering University of Texas at El Paso, Texas, USA.
Department of Electrical Engineering University of Texas at El Paso, Texas, USA..

DOI: 10.4236/eng.2012.410B006                

Abstract

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an unpredictable disease of the central nervous system that can range from relatively benign to somewhat disabling to devastating, as communication between the brain and other parts of the body is disrupted. Scientists have learned a great deal about MS in recent years; yet still, its cause remains elusive. This paper intends to investigate the hypothesis that gait dynamics have meaning and may be useful in providing insight into the neural control of locomotion. It further seeks to explore the mutual interactions and influences of MS functions on gait, and vice versa, in a quantitative and robust fashion. Ground reaction forces (GRFs), muscle activities, and segmental accelerations within a gait cycle were analyzed in this study. Patterns of the signals from six relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients were compared with the healthy subjects. This quantitative gait analysis aids to illuminate a better understanding of the mobility-related disease such as RRMS characteristics. An outcome of this study is a reproducible methodology for helping therapists make reliable and differentiable diagnosis, design a tailored therapeutic strategy, and comfortably evaluate the follow-ups on patient’s functional recovery.

Keywords

Ground Reaction Forces; EMG Muscle Activities; Multiple Scelorsis; Segmental Accelerations; Kinetic and Kinematics Measurement; Fuzzy Relation Matrix; Fuzzy Similarity

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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