Effects of lower limb muscle fatigue on spatiotemporal gait parameters among individuals with Parkinson’s disease / Halimatul Saadiah Abd Ghani

One of the key features of Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is gait disturbance and constant
spatiotemporal gait parameters changes include increased number of steps, shorter step
length, narrower step width and increased step variability during turning. Lower limb
muscle fatigue may deteriorate these further. This study aimed to investigate the effects
of lower limb muscle fatigue on spatiotemporal gait parameters during straight walking
and turning among individuals with PD. This quasi-experimental study involved twenty
individuals with PD in H&Y Stage 2 and 20 individuals with PD in H&Y Stage 3.
Participants performed extended-TUG test before and after lower limb muscle fatigue,
induced by a repeated sit-to-stand task on a chair. Spatiotemporal gait parameters were
captured using video-based assessment system. In both groups, participants
significantly (p = 0.001) increased total time, the number of steps taken, stride length
and velocity and decreased stride duration to complete the extended-TUG test after
lower limb muscle fatigue. During turning, there was a significant increase in time and
number of steps (p = 0.001) to accomplish turning during extended-TUG test after lower
limb muscle fatigue. Individuals with PD in H&Y 3 group presented marked more
deterioration of gait performance after lower limb muscle fatigue compared to
individuals with PD in H&Y 2 group. The spatiotemporal gait parameters changes could
be an attempt to improve balance and safety during walking under lower limb muscle
fatigue condition.