Many pregnant women suffer from pelvic girdle pain (PGP) during pregnancy. Etiologies are multifactorial and affect the joint stability of the sacroiliac joint. Pelvic belts could restore stability and reduce pain during gait. The center of pressure (COP) is a reliable parameter to assess gait and balance. The objectives of this study were to analyze the COP during gait in pregnant women with PGP, to evaluate the effect of pelvic belts and to compare two types of belts on COP parameters. Materials and Methods: 46 pregnant women with PGP, 58 healthy pregnant women and 23 non-pregnant women participated in the study. The motor task consisted of three gait trials at different velocities on an electronic walkway. Two pelvic belts for pregnant women were used. An analysis of variance was performed to determine the effects of the progression of the pregnancy, gait speed, presence of pregnancy and occurrence of pain on the COP parameters. Results: Compared to the control group, pregnant women with PGP had a higher stance time, but COP displacement and velocity were lower. The COP parameters varied between pregnant women with and without pelvic girdle pain, the use of a belt during pregnancy decreased the walking velocity. No difference was found according to the type of belt. Conclusions: Differences in COP parameters during gait between pregnant women with or without PGP were minimal. Pelvic girdle pain did not affect the center of pressure. Wearing a belt during pregnancy modified the center of pressure velocity during gait in pregnant women with PGP.
Physical and hormonal modifications occuring during the pregnancy, can lead to an increase in postural instability and to a higher risk of falls during gait. The first objective was to describe the center of pressure (COP) during late pregnancy at different gait velocity. Comparison of nulliparous women with postpartum women were conducted in order to investigate the effects of pregnancy. The second objective was to analyse COP variability between pregnant and non-pregnant women in order to investigate the effects of regnancy on gait variability. Methods: Fifty-eight pregnant women in the last four months of pregnancy, nine postpartum women and twenty-three healthy non-pregnant women performed gait trials at three different speeds: preferred, slow and fast. Results: In the last four months of pregnancy gait velocity decreased. During the pregnancy, gait velocity decreased by 22%, stopover time increased by 6–12%, COP excursion XY decreased by 5% and COP velocity decreased by 16% and 20% along the anteroposterior and transverse axes, respectively. After delivery, gait velocity increased by 3% but remained a lower compared to non-pregnant women (–12%). Intra-individual variability was greater for non-pregnant than pregnant women. Conclusions: COP parameters were influenced by pregnancy. This suggests that pregnant women establish very specific and individual strategies with the aim of maintaining stability during gait.
The objective of this study was to describe spatial and temporal parameters during gait in pregnant women, and to compare it with women in post-partum and with a control group. Methods: To investigate alteration in natural locomotion, we used an electronic walkway (GAITRite system). Fifty-eight pregnant women (four last months of pregnancy), nine post-partum women and twenty-three healthy nulligravidae women participated in this study. The women performed the motor task at three different speeds: preferred, fast and slow. Spatial and temporal parameters for pregnant and non-pregnant were compared. Results: In pregnant women, gait speed, step length and cadence were reduced. Consequently, cycle time was longer. The gait cycle was modified by an increase of stance phase and a decrease of swing phase. As a result, an increase of double support and a decrease of single support phases were observed. Step width increased by 15%. Conclusions: The pattern of gait displayed significant modifications during pregnancy as compared to nulliparous women. These changes favour a more stable and safe gait. After childbirth, women kept some characteristics of gait in pregnancy during 8 months.
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