Assessment of walking stability of elderly by means of nonlinear time-series analysis and simple accelerometry

Yasuaki Ohtaki, Muhammad Arif, Akihiro Suzuki, Kazuki Fujita, Hikaru Inooka, Ryoichi Nagatomi, Ichiro Tsuji

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

19 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This study presents an assessment of walking stability in elderly people, focusing on local dynamic stability of walking. Its main objectives were to propose a technique to quantify local dynamic stability using nonlinear time-series analyses and a portable instrument, and to investigate their reliability in revealing the efficacy of an exercise training intervention for elderly people for improvement of walking stability. The method measured three-dimensional acceleration of the upper body, and computation of Lyapunov exponents, thereby directly quantifying the local stability of the dynamic system. Straight level walking of young and elderly subjects was investigated in the experimental study. We compared Lyapunov exponents of young and the elderly subjects, and of groups before and after the exercise intervention. Experimental results demonstrated that the exercise intervention improved local dynamic stability of walking. The proposed method was useful in revealing effects and efficacies of the exercise intervention for elderly people.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)607-612
Number of pages6
JournalJSME International Journal, Series C: Mechanical Systems, Machine Elements and Manufacturing
Volume48
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2006 Jun 15

Keywords

  • Accelerometer
  • Biomechanics
  • Human engineering
  • Information processing and signal analysis
  • Medical application
  • Nonlinear time-series analysis
  • Walking stability

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