Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science

korean Academy of Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science (물리치료재활과학회)
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The Correlation between Lower Limb Torsion and Gait Angle: A Study on the Range of Motion of Hip and Knee Joints

  • Seok-Bin Lee (Department of Physical Therapy, Konyang University) ;
  • Hyeong-gyeong Kim (Department of Physical Therapy, Konyang University) ;
  • Da-Yeon Nam (Department of Physical Therapy, Konyang University) ;
  • Ju-Ha Shin (Department of Physical Therapy, Konyang University) ;
  • Dae-Sung Park (Department of Physical Therapy, Konyang University)
  • Received : 2024.07.09
  • Accepted : 2024.09.30
  • Published : 2024.09.30
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Abstract

Objective: This study investigates the influence of femoral and knee torsion angles on toe in-out orientation in adults. Design: Cross-sectional study design. Methods: We measured the passive internal and external rotation range of motion (ROM) of the hip and knee joints in 21 participants using a goniometer. Toe in-out orientation was assessed with the GaitRite gait analysis system during slow and fast walking trials over a 6-meter walkway. Pearson correlation analysis was used to examine the relationship between joint ROM and gait angle at both walking speeds. Intra- and inter-rater reliability were assessed, and simple linear regression was conducted to explore these relationships. Results: Intra-rater reliability demonstrated high reliability (0.84<ICC<0.94), while inter-rater reliability (0.44<ICC<0.83) exhibited moderate to high reliability. Significant correlations were found between the hip joint's range of motion and the gait angle at slow walking speed. Similar results were observed at fast walking speed for the hip joint. Multiple regression analysis revealed that the neutral angle of the hip joint (β=0.660, p<0.001) and the neutral angle of the knee joint (β=0.284, p=0.034) significantly contributed to the toe-out angle. Conclusions: Our findings indicate a significant correlation between the range of motion of the hip joint and toe in-out orientation. A decrease in the hip joint internal rotation angle was associated with a decrease in toe in-out, while an increase in the mid-angle was associated with an increase in toe in-out.

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References

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