THE ROLL-OVER PATTERN AND PLANTAR PRESSURE DISTRIBUTION CHANGES DURING THE FIRST GAIT DEVELOPMENT IN TODDLERS AND THE EFFECT OF GENDER
| Authors | |
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| Year of publication | 2021 |
| Type | Article in Proceedings |
| Conference | 9th International Scientific Conference on Kinesiology |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Keywords | Gait; Gender; Plantar pressure; Roll-over pattern; Toddler |
| Description | Introduction: The first gait in toddler is different from adult walking. The purpose of this study was to compare gender differences in foot loading and gait development in the first’s months of walking experience by analyzing plantar pressures during a barefoot walk. Methods: Seventeen toddlers, 8 girls and 9 boys, participated in this study at the onset of their independent walk (5.75 ± 1.83 and 6.44 ± 2.74 for girls and boys, respectively) and one month after the first data collection session (10.13 ± 2.17 and 10.22 ± 3.03 for girls and boys, respectively). Participants were encouraged to walk barefoot over the Emed-at platform (Novel GmbH, Germany) at their self-selected speed. Using the Emed-at software, the foot was divided into 10 regions. At each region, the contact area, maximal force normalized to body weight and peak pressure were analysed. Results: The results of this study show gender-specific differences in the first gait development in toddlers. Toddler girls tend to acquire the postural balance better/faster resulting in the predominance of mature heel to toe roll-over pattern and increase load on forefoot region during their third month of walking experience. On the other hand, toddler boys have increased contact area at the area of midfoot, indicating a different foot structure. Conclusions: These findings support the suggestion, that shoe design should reflect the different gender needs to enable the optimal foot and gait development and function as reported previously. |
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