Determining the Muscle Strength and the Anticipated Gait Pattern by means of the Lesion Height at Patients with Spinal Cord Injuries
- Authors: Daniel Sabbagh1, Jörg Fior2, Ralf Gentz2
- Institutions: 1FIOR & GENTZ GmbH – Scientific Editing, 2FIOR & GENTZ GmbH – Management
- Form of Contribution: presentation
- Congress: 29th Annual Meeting of the German-Speaking Medical Society for Paraplegia (Deutschsprachige Medizinische Gesellschaft für Paraplegie e.V., DMGP)
- Location: Hamburg, Germany
- Date: 25–28 May 2016
- Expert Association: German-Speaking Medical Society for Paraplegia
Summary: Traumatic spinal cord injuries of the lumbar spine and sacral vertebrae can often lead to a pathological gait. In many cases, the use of orthoses can improve the gait significantly. For an optimal orthotic treatment, the muscle strength determined by a manual muscle test (MMT) is a crucial factor. Every muscle group is innervated by an individual range of spinal segments. Due to the relation between lesion height and innervation of individual muscle groups, the muscle strength and hence the expected pathological gait can be determined at an early stage. This relation can help to plan orthotic as well as physiotherapeutic measures in advance.
Keywords: spinal cord injuries, orthoses, lesion height, muscle strength, pathological gait
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