OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that footrests contribute to active control of sitting balance. DESIGN: Cross-sectional group study. SETTING: Rehabilitation center. PARTICIPANTS: Ten persons with complete low thoracic (T9-12) spinal cord injury (SCI), 10 persons with complete lumbar (L1-5) SCI, and 10 matched able-bodied controls. INTERVENTION: An elastically suspended footrest. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Reaching distance, time needed to perform a bimanual forward-reaching movement, center of pressure displacement, and muscle activity. RESULTS: Controls performed the forward-reaching movement slower and with less forward acceleration of the center of mass (COM) in the chair with the elastic footrest. Furthermore, they revealed a typical change in muscle activity patterns when the solid footrest was replaced by the elastic one. Persons with SCI performed the forward-reaching movement equally fast in both footrest conditions, but those with lumbar SCI showed less forward acceleration of the COM, whereas persons with thoracic SCI revealed more forward acceleration of the COM in the chair with the elastic footrest. Muscle activity patterns in persons with SCI did not indicate alternative muscle use through possible compensations or reflex activity. CONCLUSIONS: Regarding wheelchair design, footrest condition does not seem to affect the range in which manual activities of daily living can be performed, but it does affect how they are performed. Copyright 2002 by the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that footrests contribute to active control of sitting balance. DESIGN: Cross-sectional group study. SETTING: Rehabilitation center. PARTICIPANTS: Ten persons with complete low thoracic (T9-12) spinal cord injury (SCI), 10 persons with complete lumbar (L1-5) SCI, and 10 matched able-bodied controls. INTERVENTION: An elastically suspended footrest. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Reaching distance, time needed to perform a bimanual forward-reaching movement, center of pressure displacement, and muscle activity. RESULTS: Controls performed the forward-reaching movement slower and with less forward acceleration of the center of mass (COM) in the chair with the elastic footrest. Furthermore, they revealed a typical change in muscle activity patterns when the solid footrest was replaced by the elastic one. Persons with SCI performed the forward-reaching movement equally fast in both footrest conditions, but those with lumbar SCI showed less forward acceleration of the COM, whereas persons with thoracic SCI revealed more forward acceleration of the COM in the chair with the elastic footrest. Muscle activity patterns in persons with SCI did not indicate alternative muscle use through possible compensations or reflex activity. CONCLUSIONS: Regarding wheelchair design, footrest condition does not seem to affect the range in which manual activities of daily living can be performed, but it does affect how they are performed. Copyright 2002 by the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Authors: Inge E Eriks-Hoogland; Trynke Hoekstra; Sonja de Groot; Gerold Stucki; Marcel W Post; Lucas H van der Woude Journal: J Spinal Cord Med Date: 2013-11-07 Impact factor: 1.985