The effect of segment parameter error on gait analysis results

The extent to which errors in predicting body segment parameters (SP) influence biomechanical analysis of human motion is unclear. Therefore, the current study quantitatively evaluated the differences in SP estimates using literature predictive functions and computed the effect of SP variation on the kinetic output of walking. For a group of 15 young males, significant differences (P<0.05) were observed between SP estimates for the leg and thigh using the literature predictive functions, with mass and moment of inertial values differing by more than 40%. Using kinematic and ground reaction force data collected for each subject while walking, inverse dynamic analysis was performed iteratively to compute hip forces and moments while simultaneously varying SP values over nine intervals within ±40% of a baseline value. SP variations were found to significantly affect (P<0.05) most of the kinetic estimates produced, particularly those taken during the swing phase. However, the magnitude of these effects was generally less than 1% of body weight. The data from the current study allows researchers to estimate the errors in kinetic measures due to SP variation. The results also indicate that the accuracy of SP prediction should be of concern in biomechanical research particularly for open chain and high acceleration activities. Further study is necessary to identify the importance of SP variation on other motion skills.