Brake Force During Gait After Total Knee Arthroplasty

Abstract

This study used force platforms and a three-dimensional motion analysis system to examine the relationship between pre- and post-operative brake force and the joint angle of the knee during walking. Ten female patients with unilateral osteoarthritis of the knee and a control group of five healthy female subjects were studied. Before surgery, the average brake force (ABF) in the OA group was significantly lower than that of the control subjects. Compared to that before surgery, the ABF at four and twelve weeks after surgery was significantly increased, but remained lower than that of the control subjects. The ABF is part of the inertia energy mainly absorbed by knee flexion and ankle plantar flexion. The decrease in ABF in OA subjects indicated an insufficiency in the eccentric contraction of the quadriceps muscle in the early stance phase. Thus, it was considered that the difference between the improvement in kinematic and kinetic factors indicated the need to develop new post-operative rehabilitation techniques.