Reducing Fall Risks for Adults With Obesity

Obesity has a negative impact on aspects of walking associated with fall risks. After weight loss surgery, adults show improvements in walking. However, those who undergo surgery still show deficits in walking and an additional group of individuals do not undergo the procedure. Our objective was to examine if practice could improve gait patterns associated with fall risks before patients underwent weight loss surgery. Adults with obese body mass index between 30 to 60 years old who were eligible to undergo the Roux-en-Y weight loss surgery procedure walked under five conditions: initial baseline walking on flat ground, crossing three obstacle heights, and final baseline walking on flat ground for a total of 25 trials. Spatio-temporal gait parameters were collected using a gait carpet and body-worn sensors. The GAITRite mat was a 4.9 m long x 0.6 m wide pressure-sensitive mat with a temporal resolution of 120 Hz and a spatial resolution of 1.3 cm. LEGSysTM includes five wearable sensors containing triaxial gyroscopes, accelerometers, and magnetometers. Dependent variables selected included velocity (cm/s), cadence (steps/minute), step length (distance between consecutive steps), step width (lateral distance between feet), single limb support time (amount of time spent on one leg during the walking cycle), and double limb support time (amount of time spend on two legs during the walking cycle).

Inclusion criteria

• between 30 and 60 years old
• eligible to undergo Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery
• walk independently without assistive devices

Exclusion criteria

• scheduled to undergo knee surgery
• receiving dialysis
• being treated for cancer