Synchrony of pelvic and hip joint motion during walking

We report a study into the coordination of the movements of the pelvis and hip joints during walking at two speeds. 108 healthy subjects were filmed using an automated video-based system. Movements of the pelvis and the lower limbs and their contribution to step length were analysed and the coordination of the movements with respect to one another was investigated using cross-correlational analysis. We found strong evidence of consistent temporal relationships within some of the movements with no gender or age effect. Increasing walking speed to a fast comfortable pace tended to produce tighter phase locking of movement patterns. We conclude that expression of the biomechanical determinants of walking ought to include temporal interactions and that axial rotation of the pelvis is probably of little consequence as an essential component of normal gait. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.