Jeffrey Pence, Utah Valley University
Exercise Science
Introduction:
Crutches are used while recovering from lower extremity injuries. While recovering, patients need to maintain sufficient contact with the ground in order to avoid the risk of becoming reinjured. The Tru-motion Go Tip is a newly invented curved rubber-treaded crutch tip that works by providing more uniform contact with the ground. The purpose of our research is to determine the validity of the claims made by the manufactures and sellers, such as Lifetime, that claim that the new tip increases stability and provides 100% more contact surface with the ground than standard crutch tips. There have not been any real life studies to test the functionality or performance of the Tru-motion Go Tip on crutches.
Methods:
Approval was given through the IRB # 00851 to begin research. Seventeen college age students, ten male and seven female, were recruited randomly from Utah Valley University. Previous use of crutches, height, weight, and other demographical data was collected, consent forms were signed, and participants were instructed on proper crutch use before beginning. The left leg of each participant was placed in an Ossur post-op knee brace locked at ninety degrees. Participants used four different variations. A standard crutch tip and a Tru-motion Go Tip on two types of crutches; regular crutches and spring loaded crutches with ergonomic grips. They used the crutches to walk across a twenty foot Gaitrite carpet that recorded the right crutch tip and right foot fall in each trial. The Gaitrite carpet measured velocity, stance time, single/double support time, and the pressures/contact points exerted by the crutch tips. The order in which each crutch and crutch tip used was randomized in each trail.
Results:
Data was analyzed through nonparametric Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test using SPSS software. There was no difference between the crutch types, so the data was analyzed together. Double support time was found to be different when using the different crutch tips with the round tip having more contact time (0.456 sec, 0.426 sec, p=.048)
Discussion:
Double support time is the time spent when both the crutches and the feet are in contact with the ground. The data suggests that the double support time of the regular crutch tips is longer.