Evan Konkey
Research Mentor(s): Riann Smith
Mentor Department: School of Kinesiology
Authors: Evan Konkey, AJ Crone, Riann Palmieri-Smith
Session: Session 5 (2:00pm – 2:50pm)
Presentation Type: Poster 110
Abstract
Patients who undergo Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction (ACLR) develop altered walking biomechanics because of their injury and surgery. Underloading of the ACLR limb (i.e., loading in the ACLR limb/knee less than the uninjured limb) is a problematic biomechanical consequence of ACLR that has been linked to early-onset osteoarthritis in the joint. Interventions targeting this underloading behavior could improve rehabilitation programs to help preserve long-term knee health. Split-Belt treadmill (SBT) training involves people walking on a treadmill with two separate belts set to different speeds and has been shown to minimize gait asymmetries in neurological populations. We want to understand the best way to improve loading symmetry in the ACLR population with an SBT training intervention, however, it is unclear how patients with different knee loading symmetries respond to SBT training. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of SBT training in ACLR patients based on their loading asymmetry classification (i.e., underloaders or non-underloaders). 25 participants with ACLR (Sex:14F, Age:27.7±21.3 yr, Height:1.72±0.08m, Mass:75.61±13.83kg, Time Post-Op:238±52.9days) completed 5 minutes of 1.1 m/s tied-belt treadmill walking. Next, subjects underwent SBT training at 2 decoupled speeds (i.e., the ACL limb walking at 30% or 170% of 1.1 m/s and the healthy limb walking at 1.1 m/s). Changes in peak knee moments from baseline tied-belt training to SBT training were calculated for early and mid-stance. A significant difference was found between groups during early stance, illustrating that underloaders increased their peak moment more than the non-underloaders at the 170% decoupled speed (p=0.0473). No other significant differences were noted (p>0.05). ACLR patients with and without loading asymmetries respond similarly to SBT training. With a better understanding of how SBT training affects loading asymmetries, we can better tailor this intervention to combat the effects of knee loading asymmetry on cartilage health.
