Light Touch Cue Through a Cane Improves Pelvic Stability During Walking in Stroke

The relationship of the cane force (N) during the force contact and touch contact conditions and the gait cycle normalized to 100%, from the initial contact of the paretic leg to another initial contact of the same paretic leg. The data are from a representative subject with stroke. The cane force is represented by the dark line, and the foot switch is represented by the dotted gray line. The foot switch lines above the x-axis and on the x-axis depict the stance and swing phase of the paretic leg, respectively. Abbreviations: FC, force contact; TC, touch contact.

ML pelvic acceleration from a representative subject with stroke during 1 gait cycle of the paretic leg in the force contact and touch contact conditions. Peak-to-peak amplitude has been calculated to represent the ML pelvic stability during walking. Abbreviations: FC, force contact; g, gravity; p-p amplitude, peak-to-peak amplitude; TC, touch contact.

(A) Group average of paretic stance duration, paretic single-limb support duration and paretic VM activation duration, normalized to gait cycle, during FC and TC conditions. (B) Muscle activity (rectified and smooth) of paretic VM from a representative subject normalized to 100% of gait cycle, starting from the initial contact of the paretic leg to another initial contact of the same paretic leg, during the force contact and touch contact conditions. The dotted grey line represents the foot switch; the line above the x-axis and on the x-axis depicts the stance and swing phase of the paretic leg, respectively. Arrow represents the end of the muscle activation (off). *Significant difference in duration between FC and TC conditions of cane usage. Abbreviations: FC, force contact; TC, touch contact.

Group average of EMG integrals of bilateral TFL, ST, and VM during the stance phase (A) and the swing phase (B) of the paretic leg when using the cane in the force contact and touch contact conditions. These EMG integrals are normalized to integrals of peak activity of the same muscle on the nonparetic leg. *Significant difference in EMG integrals between FC and TC conditions of cane usage. Abbreviations: FC, force contact; TC, touch contact.

Muscle activity (rectified and smooth) of paretic VM, ST, and TFL from a representative subject normalized to 100% of gait cycle, starting from the initial contact of the paretic leg to another initial contact of the same paretic leg, during the force contact and touch contact conditions. The dotted gray line represents the foot switch; the lines above the x-axis and on the x-axis depict the stance and swing phase of the paretic leg, respectively. Abbreviations: FC, force contact; TC, touch contact.