Sensory feedback from dorsal foot skin and its affect on kinematics

NewsBot · May 30, 2015

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Baseline skin information from the foot dorsum is used to control lower limb kinematics during level walking.
Howe EE, Toth AJ, Vallis LA, Bent LR.
Exp Brain Res. 2015 May 28

The aim of the current study was to explore the role of dorsal foot skin on the joint kinematics of gait during level walking. Twelve volunteers experienced sensory perturbations with either reduced dorsal skin feedback using topical anesthetic, reduced visual feedback of the lower visual field, or a combination of both cutaneous and visual reductions (paired). The visual condition was introduced to impose a greater reliance on skin input (goggles occluded lower visual field input). Our results showed that a reduction in skin input, alone, resulted in significant angular position changes at both the ankle and knee joints through swing (increased flexion, p < 0.010), despite preservation of minimal toe clearance (MTC; p = 0.908). Conversely, a reduction in lower visual field input resulted in a greater minimal toe clearance affect (MTC; p < 0.001), a slight increase in dorsiflexion at the ankle (p = 0.046), yet no effect on angular position changes for the knee (p = 0.110). The locomotor changes observed following a reduction in cutaneous feedback from the foot dorsum suggest an important role of the skin over this region for the regulation of level ground walking. Interestingly, it appears that these healthy young adults were able to compensate for the reduced skin information while preserving locomotor efficiency via a maintained ground clearance (MTC). Our data also demonstrated an interaction between skin and visual inputs; vision appears to have a less dominant role compared to skin in controlling the joint positions through swing phase of gait. This work is the first to highlight the influence of reduced cutaneous input from the dorsum of the foot on locomotor strategie
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Admin2 · May 30, 2015

Related Thread:
Effects of enhanced plantar sensory feedback and foot orthoses on midfoot kinematics

NewsBot · Jul 30, 2017

Beyond the Bottom of the Foot: Topographic Organization of the Foot Dorsum in Walking.
Klarner, Taryn; Pearcey, Gregory E.P.; Sun, Yao; Barss, Trevor S.; Kaupp, Chelsea; Munro, Bridget; Frank, Nick; Zehr, E. Paul
Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise: July 27, 2017

Introduction: Sensory feedback from the foot dorsum during walking has only been studied globally by whole nerve stimulation. Stimulating the main nerve innervating the dorsal surface produces a functional stumble corrective response that is phase-dependently modulated. We speculated that effects evoked by activation of discrete skin regions on the foot dorsum would be topographically organized, as with the foot sole.

Methods: Non-noxious electrical stimulation was delivered to five discrete locations on the dorsal surface of the foot during treadmill walking. Muscle activity from muscles acting at the ankle, knee, hip and shoulder were recorded along with ankle, knee and hip kinematics and kinetic information from forces under the foot. All data were sorted based on stimulus occurrence in twelve step-cycle phases, before being averaged together within a phase for subsequent analysis.

Results: Results reveal dynamic changes in reflex amplitudes and kinematics that are site-specific and phase-dependent. Most responses from discrete sites on the foot dorsum were seen in the swing phase suggesting function to conform foot trajectory to maintain stability of the moving limb. In general, responses from lateral stimulation differed from medial stimulation and effects were largest from stimulation at the distal end of the foot at the metatarsals. That is, in anatomical locations where actual impact with an object in the environment is most likely during swing. Responses to stimulation extend to include muscles at the hip and shoulder.

Conclusions: We reveal afferent feedback from specific cutaneous locations on the foot dorsum influences stance and swing phase corrective responses. This emphasizes the critical importance of feedback from the entire foot surface in locomotor control and has application for rehabilitation following neurological injury and in footwear development
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Stanley · Jul 31, 2017

NewsBot said: ↑

Baseline skin information from the foot dorsum is used to control lower limb kinematics during level walking.
Howe EE, Toth AJ, Vallis LA, Bent LR.
Exp Brain Res. 2015 May 28
Click to expand...

Are they testing the skin or superficial fascia?

NewsBot · Nov 15, 2017

Beyond the Bottom of the Foot: Topographic Organization of the Foot Dorsum in Walking.
Klarner T et al
Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2017 Dec;49(12):2439-2450. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000001389.

INTRODUCTION:
Sensory feedback from the foot dorsum during walking has only been studied globally by whole nerve stimulation. Stimulating the main nerve innervating the dorsal surface produces a functional stumble corrective response that is phase-dependently modulated. We speculated that effects evoked by activation of discrete skin regions on the foot dorsum would be topographically organized, as with the foot sole.
METHODS:
Nonnoxious electrical stimulation was delivered to five discrete locations on the dorsal surface of the foot during treadmill walking. Muscle activity from muscles acting at the ankle, knee, hip, and shoulder were recorded along with ankle, knee, and hip kinematics and kinetic information from forces under the foot. All data were sorted on the basis of stimulus occurrence in 12 step cycle phases, before being averaged together within a phase for subsequent analysis.
RESULTS:
Results reveal dynamic changes in reflex amplitudes and kinematics that are site specific and phase dependent. Most responses from discrete sites on the foot dorsum were seen in the swing phase suggesting function to conform foot trajectory to maintain stability of the moving limb. In general, responses from lateral stimulation differed from medial stimulation, and effects were largest from stimulation at the distal end of the foot at the metatarsals; that is, in anatomical locations where actual impact with an object in the environment is most likely during swing. Responses to stimulation extend to include muscles at the hip and shoulder.
CONCLUSIONS:
We reveal that afferent feedback from specific cutaneous locations on the foot dorsum influences stance and swing phase corrective responses. This emphasizes the critical importance of feedback from the entire foot surface in locomotor control and has application for rehabilitation after neurological injury and in footwear development.
Click to expand...

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