Feature Assessment of Toe Area Activity during Walking of Elderly People with Stumbling Experiences through Wearable Clog-Integrated Plantar Visualization System

In this study, we investigated the relationship between toe-area activity and stumbling experiences utilizing our developed sensing system, in order to assess toe-area activity in elderly people with stumbling experiences. The sensing system enables the visualization of the plantar aspect while walking on any surface and under any condition. An image of the plantar aspect is received at a reflecting surface and captured by a camera attached to a clog. The toe-area activity was evaluated by comparing the difference between the toe contact areas at heel-strike and push-off. Thirteen young individuals (nine men and four women, age 22.4 ± 2 years) and nine elderly individuals (five men and four women, age 65.3 ± 2 years) participated in the experiment by walking along a straight line wearing the plantar sensing system on their feet. The analysis found that a low value of the mean toe activity for multiple walking cycles was associated with high stumbling risk, irrespective of age, whereas large variations in toe activity was associated with aging. These results indicate that toe activity can predict stumbling risk irrespective of age. We also found that a large value of the maximum toe activity during multiple walking cycles indicates aging, whereas a low value is associated with high stumbling risk.