Linked Life Data

19272665

Source:http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/id/19272665

Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
2
pubmed:dateCreated
2009-3-18
pubmed:abstractText
During the development of walking, toddlers with Down syndrome (DS) and typical development (TD) face challenges controlling muscles, joints, and body segments. Toddlers with DS have additional challenges including increased joint laxity and decreased muscle tone and show delayed walking onset; the underlying activity of the neuromotor system remains unclear. Here we investigated the emergence of muscle activity from walking onset through 6 months of practice in eight toddlers with DS and eight with TD. We monitored the activity of core gait muscles and motion of leg segments as toddlers walked at their self-selected speeds. At walking onset muscle bursts were frequent with inconsistent burst durations. Over time, both groups of toddlers began to activate their leg muscles by using energy-efficient strategies: decreased muscle burst frequency (Wilks' Lambda=0.364, F(12, 103.476)=4.009, p< .001) and increased muscle burst duration (Wilks' Lambda=0.346, F(12, 71.727)=2.946, p= .002). Toddlers with TD increased normalized inter-burst intervals over time but toddlers with DS decreased these interval durations. By 6 months of experience toddlers with TD showed an efficient synergy among muscles, allowing increased relaxation time between bursts. Toddlers with DS improved the rhythmicity of their muscle burst, sustaining longer bursts but timing remained inconsistent. We propose increased muscle burst duration in toddlers with DS may add control by stabilizing their lax joints. Thus, their similar yet different emergent strategy may reflect their unique biomechanical and neurophysiological constraints and represent an efficient control strategy.
pubmed:grant
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Apr
pubmed:issn
1872-7646
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Electronic
pubmed:volume
28
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
283-96
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2009
pubmed:articleTitle
Emergence of neuromuscular patterns during walking in toddlers with typical development and with Down syndrome.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. chc111@pitt.edu
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural