Gait assessment with solesound instrumented footwear in spinal muscular atrophy.
Gait impairment is common in spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and is described using clinical assessments and instrumented walkways. Continuous over-ground walking has not been studied. Nine SMA participants completed the 6-minute walk test (6MWT) and 10-meter walk/run wearing instrumented footwear (SoleSound). Data were simultaneously collected using a reference system (GAITRite). The root-mean-square error (RMSE) indicated criterion validity. The decrease in walking speed represented fatigue. Foot loading patterns were evaluated using force sensors. The RMSE for stride time, length, and velocity ranged from 1.3% to 1.7%. Fatigue was 11.6 ± 9.1%, which corresponded to an average deceleration of 0.37 ± 0.28 mm/s2 . Participants spent most of their stance without heel contact. Forefoot contact occurred early in the gait cycle. These results suggest that footwear-based devices are an alternative to specialized equipment for gait assessment. Better understanding of gait disturbances should inform ongoing treatment efforts and provide a more sensitive outcome measure. Muscle Nerve 56: 230-236, 2017.