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Peak shoulder elevation angles and concomitant plane of elevation angles during balance recovery. (a) Peak shoulder elevation angles between perturbation onset and balance recovery with the handrail. (b) Shoulder plane of elevation angles measured when peak shoulder elevation angles occurred. Mean values for each population and condition are shown; error bars represent 1 standard deviation. Letters indicate post hoc pairwise comparisons: comparisons that did not differ significantly are indicated by the same letter.
Source publication
Objective
To characterize the effect of handrail height and age on trunk and shoulder kinematics, and concomitant handrail forces, on balance recovery reactions during gait.
Background
Falls are the leading cause of unintentional injury in adults in North America. Handrails can significantly enhance balance recovery and help individuals to avoid f...
Context in source publication
Context 1
... elevation and concomitant planeof-elevation angles varied significantly with handrail height (F(7,175) ≥ 6.27; p < .001; Figure 4). As handrail height increased, shoulder elevation angles generally increased, while concomitant shoulder plane-of-elevation angles generally increased in magnitude in the negative direction (indicating shoulder extension). ...
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Citations
... This training may improve movement time and success in grasping the handrail. Further, environmental modifications would be based on identifying handrail characteristics that improve balance recovery such as handrail height [77] and handrail size/shape [78,79]. Similarly, increasing handrail visibility may be effective, since hand muscle activity increased when participants simply viewed a safety handle [80]. ...
Injuries commonly occur on stairs, with high injury rates in young adults, especially young women. High injury rates could result from physiological and/or behavioral differences; this study focuses on behaviors. The purposes of this observational study were (1) to quantify young adult behaviors during stair descent and (2) to identify differences in stair descent behavior for young adult men versus women. Young adult pedestrians (N = 2,400, 1,470 men and 930 women) were videotaped during descent of two indoor campus staircases, a short staircase (2 steps) and a long staircase (17 steps). Behaviors during stair descent were coded by experimenters. Risky behaviors observed on the short staircase included: No one used the handrail, 16.1% used an electronic device, and 16.4% had in-person conversations. On the long staircase: 64.8% of pedestrians did not use the handrail, 11.9% used an electronic device, and 14.5% had in-person conversations. Risky behaviors observed more in women included: less likely to use the handrail (long staircase), more likely to carry an item in their hands (both staircases), more likely to engage in conversation (both staircases), and more likely to wear sandals or heels (both staircases) (p≤0.05). Protective behaviors observed more in women included: less likely to skip steps (both staircases), and more likely to look at treads during transition steps (long staircase) (p≤0.05). The number of co-occurring risky behaviors was higher in women: 1.9 vs 2.3, for men vs women, respectively (p<0.001). Five pedestrians lost balance but did not fall; four of these pedestrians lost balance on the top step and all five had their gaze diverted from the steps at the time balance was lost. The observed behaviors may be related to the high injury rate of stair-related falls in young adults, and young women specifically.
... This training may improve movement time and success in grasping the handrail. Further, environmental modifications would be based on identifying handrail characteristics that improve balance recovery such as handrail height [77] and handrail size/shape [78,79]. Similarly, increasing handrail visibility may be effective, since hand muscle activity increased when participants simply viewed a safety handle [80]. ...
... A similar situation exists for handrail studies, where even less data is available for handrail loads during gait. Although Komisar et al. acquired handrail force data during walking, the analysis was related to the effects of handrail height and participant age on trunk and shoulder kinematics when recovering from perturbations [4]. Similarly, all other studies mainly comprised the influence of different handrail positions and designs, whereby the analysis of the forces applied to the handrails is limited to the sit-to-stand movement [5] or different falling motions after unexpected balance loss [6]. ...
Body weight supported treadmill training is used for patients who are severely limited in their movements. During walking therapy handrails and harnesses ensure the patient’s stability and safety. Although, locomotion training is a common rehabilitation technique, data of forces applied to handrails or overhead lifts are limited. Therefore, the primary objective of this study was to measure the vertical reaction force during treadmill therapy. An additional purpose was the characterization of the loading profiles by defining suitable parameters. To measure the patient’s needs for support during treadmill training, the handrails were instrumented with strain gauges and a force sensor was placed between the harness and the ceiling lift. In order to provide gait phase detection, an inertial sensor was attached to each foot. The results confirm that the combined measuring systems are appropriate to record the total vertical weight relief. Although all patients show different loading profiles, a recurring pattern can be recognized for each patient, which allows the derivation of various parameters to characterize the single profiles. The additional information of the measurements can help the supervising physiotherapist to better understand the specific level of support the patient needs. A subsequent response and the providing of corresponding instructions by the therapist can lead to an even more individualized therapy.
The purpose of this information article is to shed light on the harm that is caused by non-compliant access routes, exacerbated by building consent exemption policies in New Zealand. The approach builds theoretical understanding of silent stakeholder issues during use-phases. An impact assessment, produced by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment as the justification for the recent expansion of Schedule One Exemptions within the Building Act 2004, is scrutinised. Findings indicated that significant failures occurred in risk identification and cost/benefit analysis. The discussion utilises lenses that policy makers could use when broaching the subject, including extant dichotomies surrounding user-error vs. building errors; structural integrity vs. ergonomics; control vs. freedom; money vs. safety and Universal Design. Originality can be demonstrated by the dearth of literature on the subject of risk identification and the absence of criticism of the Ministry’s Impact Assessment. Furthermore, this article frames sustainability in terms of safety in residential construction use-phases.
