HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when Rapid Responses are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Holt, K. G Articles by Jeng, S.-F. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Holt, K. G Articles by Jeng, S.-F. Related Collections Balance Cerebral Palsy Cerebral Palsy (Pediatrics) Social Bookmarking                      What's this?

Head Stability in Walking in Children With Cerebral Palsy and in Children and Adults Without Neurological Impairment

KG Holt, PT, PhD, is Associate Professor, Applied Kinesiology Program, Sargent College, 635 Commonwealth Ave, Boston, MA 02215 (USA) (kgholt{at}bu.edu), and Research Fellow, Center for Ecological Study for Perception and Action, University of Connecticut. Address all correspondence to Dr Holt at Sargent College
R Ratcliffe, PT, is employed in the Physical Therapy Department, Lahey Clinic, Burlington, Mass
SF Jeng, PT, ScD, is Professor, School of Physical Therapy, Medical School, National Taiwan University, Taiwan

Background and Purpose. The location of several sensory systems in the head implies that maintenance of head stability may be a potentially important part of locomotor activity. A limited amount of research, however, has been conducted to measure stability or to compare head stability among different groups. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a method for measuring head stability during walking could differentiate among 3 groups: (1) children with cerebral palsy, (2) children without neurological impairment, and (3) adults without neurological impairment. Subjects. Eight adults without known neurological impairment, 6 children without known neurological impairment, and 6 children with cerebral palsy and mild spastic hemiplegia were compared. Methods. Subjects walked on a treadmill at their preferred speed at a number of frequencies. Head stability was characterized by fluctuations in period and amplitude of head motion in the sagittal plane across walking cycles. Results. Mean period fluctuation was lower for the adults than for the children, and it was lower for the children without neurological impairments than for the children with cerebral palsy. Conclusion and Discussion. The method can be used to differentiate head stability among different groups during functional activities.

Key Words: Balance • Cerebral palsy • Head stability • Shock absorption

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				J. J. Kavanagh, S. Morrison, and R. S. Barrett Lumbar and cervical erector spinae fatigue elicit compensatory postural responses to assist in maintaining head stability during walking J Appl Physiol, October 1, 2006; 101(4): 1118 - 1126. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]