TY - JOUR
T1 - Repeated exposure to tripping like perturbations elicits more precise control and lower toe clearance of the swinging foot during steady walking
AU - Miyake, Tamon
AU - Aprigliano, Federica
AU - Sugano, Shigeki
AU - Micera, Silvestro
AU - Monaco, Vito
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by: the Program for Leading Graduate Schools, “Graduate Program for Embodiment Informatics” of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) of Japan ; the EU Commission through the H2020 project CYBERLEGs Plus Plus ( The CYBERnetic LowEr-Limb CoGnitive Ortho-prosthesis Plus Plus , Grant Agreement no. 731931 ); the Italian National Institute for Insurance against accidents at work (INAIL) within the MOTU project ( PPR-AI 1-2 ); Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science ( 19J14599 ).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Author(s)
PY - 2021/4
Y1 - 2021/4
N2 - Controlling minimum toe clearance (MTC) is considered an important factor in preventing tripping. In the current study, we investigated modifications of neuro-muscular control underlying toe clearance during steady locomotion induced by repeated exposure to tripping-like perturbations of the right swing foot. Fourteen healthy young adults (mean age 26.4 ± 3.1 years) participated in the study. The experimental protocol consisted of three identical trials, each involving three phases: steady walking (baseline), perturbation, and steady walking (post-perturbation). During the perturbation, participants experienced 30 tripping-like perturbations at unexpected timing delivered by a custom-made mechatronic perturbation device. The temporal parameters (cadence and stance phase%), mean, and standard deviation of MTC were computed across approximately 90 strides collected during both baseline and post-perturbation phases, for all trials. The effects of trial (three levels), phase (two levels: baseline and post-perturbation) and foot (two levels: right and left) on the outcome variables were analyzed using a three-way repeated measures analysis of variance. The results revealed that exposure to repeated trip-like perturbations modified MTC toward more precise control and lower toe clearance of the swinging foot, which appeared to reflect both the expectation of potential forthcoming perturbations and a quicker compensatory response in cases of a lack of balance. Moreover, locomotion control enabled subjects to maintain symmetric rhythmic features during post-perturbation steady walking. Finally, the effects of exposure to perturbation quickly disappeared among consecutive trials.
AB - Controlling minimum toe clearance (MTC) is considered an important factor in preventing tripping. In the current study, we investigated modifications of neuro-muscular control underlying toe clearance during steady locomotion induced by repeated exposure to tripping-like perturbations of the right swing foot. Fourteen healthy young adults (mean age 26.4 ± 3.1 years) participated in the study. The experimental protocol consisted of three identical trials, each involving three phases: steady walking (baseline), perturbation, and steady walking (post-perturbation). During the perturbation, participants experienced 30 tripping-like perturbations at unexpected timing delivered by a custom-made mechatronic perturbation device. The temporal parameters (cadence and stance phase%), mean, and standard deviation of MTC were computed across approximately 90 strides collected during both baseline and post-perturbation phases, for all trials. The effects of trial (three levels), phase (two levels: baseline and post-perturbation) and foot (two levels: right and left) on the outcome variables were analyzed using a three-way repeated measures analysis of variance. The results revealed that exposure to repeated trip-like perturbations modified MTC toward more precise control and lower toe clearance of the swinging foot, which appeared to reflect both the expectation of potential forthcoming perturbations and a quicker compensatory response in cases of a lack of balance. Moreover, locomotion control enabled subjects to maintain symmetric rhythmic features during post-perturbation steady walking. Finally, the effects of exposure to perturbation quickly disappeared among consecutive trials.
KW - Falling
KW - Locomotion
KW - Minimum toe clearance
KW - Perturbation
KW - Tripping
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U2 - 10.1016/j.humov.2021.102775
DO - 10.1016/j.humov.2021.102775
M3 - Article
C2 - 33631422
AN - SCOPUS:85101238773
SN - 0167-9457
VL - 76
JO - Human Movement Science
JF - Human Movement Science
M1 - 102775
ER -