Posture Analysis of Various Types of Crutch Gait of Healthy Volunteers

Rehabilitation Engineering: A Narrative Review on Recent Advances in Mobility Aids in India

Mobility has been characterized as the capacity to move across an environment safely, pleasantly, elegantly, and autonomously. India's current population is 1.4 billion, out of which 2.3%, i.e., 32 million people, are suffering from some kind of disability. With the rise in the geriatric population, the incidence of non-communicable and communicable diseases also rises and presents the risk of disorders that may progress to disability. People often neglect their disability and learn to live with it, even when most of them can use rehabilitation programs in conjunction with various mobility aids. Affordable access to adequate healthcare and assistive devices is limited, contributing to the challenges faced by disabled adults. Despite the potential for many disabled individuals to engage in productive work, their employment rates remain significantly lower. Mobility aids can provide significant benefits to individuals affected by a range of medical conditions, including arthritis, cerebral palsy, developmental disabilities, diabetic ulcers and wounds, fractures or broken bones, injuries, and walking impairments resulting from brain injury or stroke. Each person is different and may require help in a certain way for their disability, so choosing the most appropriate aid is crucial for the individual's well-being. Commonly used mobility aids are canes, walking sticks, walkers, and wheelchairs, with prostheses being used less commonly. With the advent of techniques such as state-of-the-art 3D printing and challenging surgeries, various Indian tech companies, along with non-governmental organizations (NGOs), have brought about many significant changes in the world of prosthesis by making it better, affordable, and accessible.

Oculomotor Control in Amputee Soccer Players

The authors investigated the dynamics of saccadic parameters during a stationary oculomotor target task in amputee soccer players (n = 16), able-bodied soccer players (n = 16), and nonathletic control subjects (n = 16). Eye movements during the visual-search tasks were recorded binocularly using a mobile eye-tracking system, and the gaze parameters were analyzed (fixation duration, saccade duration, saccade amplitude, saccade average acceleration, saccade peak deceleration, saccade average velocity, and ocular mobility index). The average saccade acceleration in the amputee soccer players was significantly lower than in the able-bodied players (p = .021). Other saccade characteristics in disabled athletes were comparable to those of the able-bodied groups. Moreover, the able-bodied soccer players presented faster saccadic parameters than nonathletes in terms of saccade acceleration (p = .002), deceleration (p = .015), and velocity (p = .009). The modification of oculomotor functions may result from extensive practice and participation in ball games. The authors' hypothesis that oculomotor functions in amputee soccer players may be impaired was not fully confirmed.

Analysis of Crutch Position in the Horizontal Plane to Estimate the Stability of the Axillary Pad in the Axilla during Single-crutch Walking

[Purpose] The aim of this study was to estimate the stability of the axillary pad in the axilla during single-crutch walking through kinematic analysis of the crutch position in the horizontal plane. [Subjects] The subjects were 19 healthy young males. [Methods] The subjects were instructed to walk 5 m in a straight line while using a single crutch. This was repeated 10 times. Repeated-measures analysis of variance and Tukey’s honest significance test were used to compare crutch angles across three time points during crutch stance (crutch contact, mid stance and crutch off) for each subject. [Results] A statistically significant effect of time was found in 17 of the 19 subjects. Sixteen of these 17 subjects rotated the crutch externally from crutch contact to crutch off. [Conclusion] External rotation of the crutch throughout the stance phase is important to enable the axillary pad to be held tightly against the chest wall. These results may lead to alterations of the instructions for crutch use and the prevention of falls.