TY  - JOUR
A1  - Verch, Ronald
A1  - Hirschmüller, Anja
A1  - Müller, Juliane
A1  - Baur, Heiner
A1  - Mayer, Frank
A1  - Müller, Steffen
T1  - Is in-toing gait physiological in children?
BT  - Results of a large cohort study in 5910 healthy (pre-) school children
JF  - Gait & posture
N2  - Research question: This study aimed to establish reference values in 1-14 year old healthy children and to implement FPA-percentile curves for daily clinical use. Methods: 5910 healthy children performed at least 3 repetitions of barefoot walking over an instrumented walkway using a pressure measurement platform. The FPA [degrees] was extracted and analyzed by age and gender (mean +/- standard deviation; median with percentiles, MANOVA (age, gender) and Wilcoxon-Signed-Rank test for intra-individual side differences (alpha = 0.05). Results: FPA maximum was observed in 2-year-old children and diminished significant until the age of 4 to moderate out-toeing. For ages 5-14, no statistically significant differences in FPA values were present (p > 0.05). MANOVA confirmed age (p < 0.001) and gender (p < 0.001) as significant FPA influencing factors, without combined effect (p > 0.05). In every age group, right feet showed significantly greater out-toeing (p < 0.05). Significance: Percentile values indicate a wide FPA range in children. FPA development in young children shows a spontaneous shift towards moderate external rotation (age 2-4), whereby in-toeing <= 1-5 degrees can be present, but can return to normal. Bilateral in-toeing after the age of four and unilateral in-toeing after the age of seven should be monitored.
KW  - Foot progression angle
KW  - Children
KW  - In-toeing
KW  - Out-toeing
KW  - Gait
Y1  - 2018
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gaitpost.2018.08.019
SN  - 0966-6362
SN  - 1879-2219
VL  - 66
SP  - 70
EP  - 75
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Clare
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Müller, Juliane
A1  - Müller, Steffen
A1  - Baur, Heiner
A1  - Mayer, Frank
T1  - Intra-individual gait speed variability in healthy children aged 1-15 years
JF  - Gait & posture
N2  - Introduction: Gait speed is one of the most commonly and frequently used parameters to evaluate gait development. It is characterized by high variability when comparing different steps in children. The objective of this study was to determine intra-individual gait speed variability in children.
 Methods: Gait speed measurements (6-10 trials across a 3 m walkway) were performed and analyzed in 8263 children, aged 1-15 years. The coefficient of variation (CV) served as a measure for intra-individual gait speed variability measured in 6.6 +/- 1.0 trials per child. Multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to evaluate the influence of age and body height on changes in variability. Additionally, a subgroup analysis for height within the group of 6-year-old children was applied.
 Results: A successive reduction in gait speed variability (CV) was observed for age groups (age: 1-15 years) and body height groups (height: 0.70-1.90 m). The CV in the oldest subjects was only one third of the CV (CV 6.25 +/- 3.52%) in the youngest subjects (CV 16.58 +/- 10.01%). Up to the age of 8 years (or 1.40 m height) there was a significant reduction in CV over time, compared to a leveling off for the older (taller) children.
 Discussion: The straightforward approach measuring gait speed variability in repeated trials might serve as a fundamental indicator for gait development in children. Walking velocity seems to increase to age 8. Enhanced gait speed consistency of repeated trials develops up to age 15.
KW  - Development
KW  - Gait
KW  - Speed
KW  - Variability
KW  - Children
Y1  - 2013
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gaitpost.2013.02.011
SN  - 0966-6362
SN  - 1879-2219
VL  - 38
IS  - 4
SP  - 631
EP  - 636
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Clare
ER  -