Lower limb sagittal gait kinematics can be predicted based on walking speed, gender, age and BMI.

Clinical gait analysis attempts to provide, in a pathological context, an objective record that quantifies the magnitude of deviations from normal gait. However, the identification of deviations is highly dependent with the characteristics of the normative database used. In particular, a mismatch between patient characteristics and an asymptomatic population database in terms of walking speed, demographic and anthropometric parameters may lead to misinterpretation during the clinical process. Rather than developing a new normative data repository that may require considerable of resources and time, this study aims to assess a method for predicting lower limb sagittal kinematics using multiple regression models based on walking speed, gender, age and BMI as predictors. With this approach, we were able to predict kinematics with an error within 1 standard deviation of the mean of the original waveforms recorded on fifty-four participants. Furthermore, the proposed approach allowed us to estimate the relative contribution to angular variations of each predictor, independently from the others. It appeared that a mismatch in walking speed, but also age, sex and BMI may lead to errors higher than 5° on lower limb sagittal kinematics and should thus be taken into account before any clinical interpretation

Temporal Dynamics of Interferon Gamma Responses in Children Evaluated for Tuberculosis

BACKGROUND: Development of T-cells based-Interferon gamma (IFNgamma) assays has offered new possibilities for the diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) and active disease in adults. Few studies have been performed in children, none in France. With reference to the published data on childhood TB epidemiology in the Paris and Ile de France Region, we considered it important to evaluate the performance of IGRA (QuantiFERON TB Gold In Tube(R), QF-TB-IT) in the diagnosis and the follow-up through treatment of LTBI and active TB in a cohort of French children. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: 131 children were recruited during a prospective and multicentre study (October 2005 and May 2007; Ethical Committee St Louis Hospital, Paris, study number 2005/32). Children were sampled at day 0, 10, 30, 60 (except Healthy Contacts, HC) and 90 for LTBI and HC, and a further day 120, and day 180 for active TB children. Median age was 7.4 years, with 91% of the children BCG vaccinated. LTBI and active TB children undergoing therapy produced significant higher IFNgamma values after 10 days of treatment (p = 0.035). In addition, IFNgamma values were significantly lower at the end of treatment compared to IFNgamma values at day 0, although the number of positive patients was not significantly different between day 0 and end of treatment. CONCLUSIONS/ SIGNIFICANCE: By following quantitative IFNgamma values in each enrolled child with LTBI or active TB and receiving treatment, we were able to detect an increase in the IFNgamma response at day 10 of treatment which might allow the confirmation of a diagnosis. In addition, a decline in IFNgamma values during treatment makes it possible for clinicians to monitor the effect of preventive or curative therapy

Multibody Optimisations: From Kinematic Constraints to Knee Contact Forces and Ligament Forces. In : Biomechanics of Anthropomorphic Systems

Musculoskeletal models are widely used in biomechanics today to better understand muscle and joint function. Musculo-tendon forces as well as joint contact forces and ligament forces can be estimated within an inverse dynamics computational framework. Using a musculoskeletal model of the lower limb, this chapter presents the different optimisations required to drive the model with experimental data and to compute these forces and their interactions. In these optimisations, the development of anatomical constraints representing, for example, the medial and lateral tibiofemoral contacts or the cruciate ligaments is crucial both to inverse kinematics and to inverse dynamics. Some emblematic results are presented for knee contact forces and ligament forces during gait, illustrating the couplings between joint degrees of freedom and the interactions between forces acting both in muscles and in joints

Salmonella enterica Serotype Gambia with CTX-M-3 and armA Resistance Markers: Nosocomial Infections with a Fatal Outcome▿

We report two cases of bacteremia caused by the Salmonella enterica serotype Gambia in our children's hospital, with one fatal outcome. The isolates showed indistinguishable genotypes and infrequent resistance markers: CTX-M-3 extended-spectrum β-lactamase and armA methyltransferase. This is the first report of S. Gambia exhibiting CTX-M-3 and armA markers involved in serious infections

Self‐perceived gait quality in young adults with cerebral palsy

Aim: To explore how patients with cerebral palsy (CP) perceive their gait and evaluate associations between subjective gait perception and: objective gait parameters, endurance, pain, and fatigue