Kinematics of the Foot During Slips

Details

• Personal Author:
  Cham R ; Chambers AJ ; Margerum S ; Redfern MS
• Description:
  Slip and fall accidents are often listed among the leading generators of injuries. The goals of this study were to (1) describe the foot kinematics during unexpected slips, and (2) to compare the foot kinematics during gait in unexpected slippery environment and when warnings of slippery environments are provided. Five participants walked on dry and glycerol-contaminated floors, while varying the participant's a-priori knowledge of the floor's contaminant condition. Foot kinematics were recorded at 500 Hz from 5 Optotrak LEDs placed on the slipping foot. In unexpected slips, all participants slipped and fell, whereas under the warning conditions, all participants slipped and recovered. Foot kinematics were affected by the warning conditions. More specifically, the heel's vertical velocity just prior to impact and foot-floor angle at heel contact decreased in alert/known slippery environments compared to unexpected slips. Slip distances and velocities were greater in unexpected slips. Finally, the impact of recovery attempts on the heel's kinematics were evident earlier in stance when participants knew or suspected the floor was slippery. Thus, the a-priori perception of slippery surfaces affects the foot kinematics and outcome of slipping. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accidents, Occupational Biomechanical Phenomena Environmental Health Occupational Health Occupational Injuries Safety
• Keywords:
  Accident-analysis Accidents Biomechanics Environmental-factors Floors Foot-injuries Injuries Occupational-accidents Occupational-health Surface-properties
• ISSN:
  1359-9364
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; Pennsylvania
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  225-234
• Volume:
  3
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20029322
• Citation:
  Occup Ergon 2003 Jan; 3(4):225-234
• Contact Point Address:
  Human Movement and Balance Laboratory, Department of Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, 740 Benedum Hall, 3700 O'Hara Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15261
• Email:
  chamr@upmc.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2003
• NORA Priority Area:
  Work Environment and Workforce: Special Populations
• Performing Organization:
  University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20020501
• Source Full Name:
  Occupational Ergonomics
• End Date:
  20050430
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:e7fc163cc1686797d850dff2c727912bf0aaaa7e028d3f2e6362785444ced208ebd4b92eaacc07ecd2470f9d2b7ab657d47c4afe4d1ecb8c402eb1f0b3503674
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/190335/cdc_190335_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.15 MB ]