Influence of Post-Stroke Gait on Bone Density

Principal Investigators: Gary S. Beaupré, PhD and Steven A. Kautz, PhD

Investigators: Henry L. Lew, MD; B. Jenny Kiratli, PhD; Lise C. Worthen, MS; C. Maria Kim, MSc, PT; and Jill S. Higginson, PhD

Project Category: Osteoporosis and Stroke - 2005

The underlying hypothesis for this study is that the changes in habitual skeletal loading following stroke are in large part responsible for the observed changes in bone density. This hypothesis provides the motivation for a number of key questions, the answers to which are important for improving our understanding of stroke-related osteoporosis and for providing a theoretical basis for potential rehabilitation interventions and goals. In the proposed study we will use experimental and computational approaches to answer the following key questions:

• What are the experimentally determined relationships between measured gait parameters (such as self-selected walking speed and peak ground reaction force magnitude during the stance phase of gait) and bone mineral density at the hip on the affected and non-affected sides?

• How well can computer models predict bone density in stroke patients as a function of their average daily physical activity and ground reaction force measured with gait analysis?

Milestones:

• Gait testing and bone density measurements have been completed for all subjects.

• Results for the first 33 subjects are reported in a manuscript accepted for publication in the Journal of Rehabilitation R&D.

Publication:

Worthen LC, Kim CM, Kautz SA, Lew HL, Kiratli BJ, Beaupré GS: Key Characteristics of Walking Correlate with Bone Density in Individuals with Chronic Stroke. Accepted to: Journal of Rehab R&D, July 2005.

Funding Source: VA RR&D Merit Review

Funding Status: Completed