What is it about?
The systematic review identifies push-off power differences in exo-prosthetic feet in relation to walking speeds. Three ankle-foot designs (Solid Ankle Cushion Heel (SACH), Energy Storing And Return (ESAR) and powered ankle-foot units (PWR)) were included and retrieved 474 publications, 28 of which were eligible for inclusion.
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Why is it important?
Our analyses demonstrated a positive correlation between walking speed and push-off power when walking with the PWR or ESAR but not for SACH feet. Furthermore, we found that push-off power performances among the diverse types increased for higher walking speeds (> 1.21 m/s). In contrast, the differences in push-off power performance were lower at lower walking speeds. Thus, we conclude that push-off power can be a selection criterion to differentiate between ankle-foot units for prosthetic users concerning their bandwidth of walking speeds.
Perspectives
The article shall open discussions on the value of push-off power in prosthetic feet and if there is a need to develop complex technology to provide exclusively that feature. One may thing about other aspects in prosthetic feet to impact the daily life for people living with amputations. However, the ability to changing walking speeds without compromise is a contributor to independent mobility.
Roy Müller
Klinikum Bayreuth GmbH
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Prosthetic push-off power in trans-tibial amputee level ground walking: A systematic review, PLoS ONE, November 2019, PLOS,
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0225032.
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