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INTRODUCTION
The basic gait parameters are gait speed, step length, and step frequency. In a previous article, reference data of such parameters were presented for men and women, aged 10-79 years (1). Such reference data are important in all gait analysis. However, in the laboratory gait analysis often includes goniometry (i.e., measurement of joint angles); therefore, there is also a need for reference data for such measurements. In this article, we present reference data on hip and knee motion for men and women of different ages.
Electrogoniometry represents a simple and reliable method for measuring joint motion during gait (2-5). The most frequent methods of presenting such data are as figures of total joint excursion during gait (3,6-9), as a plot of joint angle against time (10), or as angle/angle diagrams (11-13).
Goniometer measurements have been reported from studies of men (2-4,6-8), and women (3,9,14). Age effects on joint excursions during gait have also been studied by several authors (6-10,14). However, most of these studies have been done on small numbers of subjects, and cannot be used as reference data. The aim of this study was to present age and sex specific joint angle data obtained during gait analysis.
METHODS AND MATERIAL
SUBJECTS
Originally, 240 healthy subjects were examined. However, seven subjects were excluded from the original material, three girls and three boys aged 0-9 years, and one subject aged 80 years, because they were too few to represent a separate age-group. The remaining 233 subjects, aged 10-79 years, and consisting of 116 men and 117 women, were divided into 7 age-groups. Age and sex characteristics are shown in Table 1. (Table 1 omitted)
GAIT ANALYSIS
We used a modification of the gait analysis method that was developed at the Biomechanics Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, California and the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Uppsala, Sweden. The gait laboratory has a 10-meter long walkway, including acceleration and deceleration distances. Two photocells with 5.5 m intervals, self-aligning electrogoniometers, a computer, and a plotter constitute the equipment. The measurements were performed between the two photocells. Potentiometers with self-aligning exoskeleton were used (15,16). Heel strike was indicated by means of a manual switch. Basic temporal gait parameters and joint angle data were collected during slow,...