Effects of Prosthetic Arm on Sprint Performance and Kinematics in Unilateral Below-Elbow Amputees

Abstract

The relative advantages and disadvantages of using a prosthetic arm for the T47 class Paralympic sprinter (PS) form an important question for athletes and coaches. This study clarifies the influence of wearing a prosthetic arm on PS sprint performance and other kinematic variables during sprinting and includes a comparison with restricting the right arm swing on an able-bodied sprinter (ABS)．In this study, two PSs performed 40-m sprints with and without a prosthetic arm, while eight ABSs performed 40-m sprints both with a normal arm swing and also with the right arm restricted. From these tests, it appears that PS running speed did not significantly change as a result of wearing a prosthetic arm, although there was a difference in thoracic and pelvic rotation. For the ABSs, restricting the right arm swing resulted in significantly slower running speeds than running with a normal arm swing, while the spatio-temporal variables(e.g., step frequency and stride length) and kinematic variables (e.g., thorax, pelvis and lower limb kinematics) also changed. In conclusion, this study suggests that wearing a prosthetic arm may be effective for balancing trunk rotation for PS during sprinting.