Texting while walking decreases local dynamic stability

Crowley, Patrick Joseph

4. semester

Sports Technology (cand.tech.), Master

2017

2017-06-06

47

Denne undersøgelse skulle belyse, hvordan brug af smartphone påvirker den lokale dynamiske stabilitet under gang hos unge, raske voksne. Ti deltagere gennemførte gentagne gangforsøg i tre betingelser: 1) at gå uden telefon, 2) at gå og skrive sms’er, 3) at gå og tale i en smartphone. Hver betingelse blev udført ved både selvvalgt normal og selvvalgt hurtig hastighed. Bevægelsesdata blev indsamlet med et triaksialt accelerometer fastgjort ved lænden (L4–L5). Lokal dynamisk stabilitet (LDS) blev vurderet ved hjælp af den maksimale Lyapunov-eksponent (maxLyE; højere værdier tyder på dårligere evne til at fastholde et stabilt gangmønster efter små forstyrrelser), og gangvariabilitet blev vurderet med variabilitet i skridttid (SD og CV) samt et accelerationsbaseret mål (RMSratio). MaxLyE steg signifikant i den mediolaterale retning (side-til-side), når deltagerne skrev sms’er sammenlignet med at gå alene (p<0,05), hvilket tyder på lavere stabilitet side-til-side under sms-skrivning. Den gennemsnitlige skridttid faldt fra normal til hurtig gang (p<0,05). RMSratio i den mediolaterale retning var lavere ved at gå alene end ved at gå og tale (p<0,05), og var også lavere ved at gå hurtigt alene end ved at gå hurtigt og skrive sms’er (p<0,05). Samlet set tyder resultaterne på, at sms-skrivning under gang mindsker den lokale dynamiske stabilitet og variabiliteten i side-til-side-retningen hos unge, raske voksne.

This study examined how using a smartphone affects local dynamic stability while walking in young, healthy adults. Ten participants completed repeated walking trials under three conditions: 1) walking without a phone, 2) walking while texting, and 3) walking while talking on a smartphone. Each condition was performed at a self-selected normal speed and a self-selected fast speed. Movement was recorded with a tri-axial accelerometer attached to the lower back (L4–L5). Local dynamic stability (LDS) was assessed using the maximum Lyapunov exponent (maxLyE; higher values indicate a reduced ability to maintain a steady gait pattern after small perturbations), and gait variability was assessed using stride time variability (SD and CV) and an acceleration-based measure (RMSratio). MaxLyE increased significantly along the mediolateral (side-to-side) axis during texting compared with walking alone (p<0.05), indicating reduced side-to-side stability when texting. Mean stride time was shorter at fast than at normal speeds (p<0.05). The mediolateral RMSratio was lower during walking alone than during walking while talking (p<0.05), and it was also lower during fast walking alone than during fast walking while texting (p<0.05). Taken together, these results suggest that texting while walking reduces local dynamic stability and variability in the side-to-side direction in young, healthy adults.

[This abstract was generated with the help of AI]

Gait ; Smartphone ; Lyapunov ; Accelerometer ; Dual-Task ; Nonlinear

Download
View record in AAU Student Projects