Wedged Insoles and Gait in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis: A Biomechanical Review

The study of gait biomechanics in individuals with knee osteoarthritis has become widespread, especially in regards to the knee adduction moment—a variable commonly believed to be associated with knee osteoarthritis progression. Unfortunately, this variable is often studied clinically without consid...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annals of biomedical engineering 2016-11, Vol.44 (11), p.3173-3185
Main Authors: Lewinson, Ryan T., Stefanyshyn, Darren J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biochemistry
Biocompatibility
Biological and Medical Physics
Biomechanical Phenomena
Biomechanics
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering
Biomedical materials
Biomedicine
Biophysics
Classical Mechanics
Foot Orthoses
Footwear
Gait
Humans
Insoles
Knees
Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis, Knee - pathology
Osteoarthritis, Knee - physiopathology
Osteoarthritis, Knee - therapy
Patients
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The study of gait biomechanics in individuals with knee osteoarthritis has become widespread, especially in regards to the knee adduction moment—a variable commonly believed to be associated with knee osteoarthritis progression. Unfortunately, this variable is often studied clinically without considering how it is derived, or what it means in a mechanical context. The use of footwear for knee osteoarthritis management has received much attention as well. However, in many cases, footwear is studied without regard for the mechanical effects they actually induce on the patient. Therefore, this review aims to summarize the current state of knowledge in regards to knee osteoarthritis gait and footwear biomechanics, by taking a step back to review the foundations of these two research areas. First, an overview of the calculation of the knee adduction moment is provided, along with mechanical considerations. Then, this is used to discuss current evidence for wedged insoles and highlight knowledge gaps. The intent was to place this mechanical information in a clinically-oriented framework for approachability by scientists, engineers and clinicians alike. Based on this discussion, areas for future investigation are proposed.
ISSN:0090-6964
1573-9686
DOI:10.1007/s10439-016-1696-1