Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the differences in joint moment in the intact limb of uni-transfemoral amputees and to identify the implications of knee osteoarthritis. As an experimental method, three-dimensional gait analysis was performed on 10 uni-transfemoral amputees and 10 healthy males. Kinematics and kinetics at the hip, knee, and ankle joint were calculated. As a statistical method, independent t-tests were conducted to perform a comparison between the transfemoral amputee group and the control group. The results showed that the external knee adduction moment increased in the transfemoral amputee group (.22 Nm/kg) compared with that of the control group (.13 Nm/kg) at terminal stance (p=.008). External knee flexion moment also increased in the transfemoral amputee group (.24 Nm/kg) but this difference was not statistically significant. External hip flexion moment increased in the transfemoral amputee group (1.35 Nm/kg) compared with that of the control group (.45 Nm/kg) at initial stance, and external hip extension moment decreased in the transfemoral amputee group (-.26 Nm/kg) compared with that of the control group (-.76 Nm/kg) at terminal stance. Although external ankle plantarflexion moment of the transfemoral amputee group increased, it was not found to be statistically significant. The results suggest that the intact limb joint moment of the uni-transfemoral amputees during walking can be different from that of healthy subjects. In conclusion, it was found that there is a link between the increase of external knee adduction moment and the prevalence of knee osteoarthritis in uni-transfemoral amputees. This result is expected to provide some objective data for rehabilitation programs related to knee osteoarthritis in transfemoral amputees.

Keywords

• External knee adduction moment;
• Knee osteoarthritis;
• Transfemoral amputee