Acute effects of visual biofeedback on the gait cycle of the adolescents after arthrorisis surgery. Feasibility study

Background: The main visible feature in adolescent with “flat foot” is gait cycle alterations. Even if there is no consensus, in the most severe cases, surgery is indicated and arthrorisis is one of the techniques. The rehabilitation is aimed at reprogramming the correct gait dynamics and the most used method is based on verbal corrections provided by the physiotherapist. Aim: To evaluate the acute effects of a visual biofeedback on the gait cycle in a sample of adolescents who had undergone arthrorisis surgery and compare them with those obtained with treatment based on verbal corrections. Material and Methods: Three months after surgery, 23 patients (10F; 13M), aged 10 to 14 years, were recruited and divided into two groups: visual biofeedback (BG) and verbal correction (VG). For both groups, the protocol lasted 30 minutes and differed only in the type of feedback used to support participants. BG corrected his gait cycle through a visual biofeedback provided by a sensorized treadmill. VG received verbal corrections from the researcher. Pre (T0), and post-intervention (T1) a gait cycle assessment was made using a sensorized treadmill. The outcomes evaluated were step and stride length, pitch width, and the duration of stride, stance and swing phases. Results: Both intervention groups, showed significant improvements in gait parameters at T1 compared to T0. VG: step length, stride, stance and swing phases duration in the operated foot compared to the contralateral. Additionally, the contralateral foot showed significant improvements in stride and step lengths, stride, stance and swing phases duration. BG also showed improvements, with only a significant increase in the pitch width of the contralateral foot. Direct comparison between the two groups revealed that the VG had a significantly longer swing phase duration in the operated foot and a longer stride duration in the contralateral foot. Conclusion: Both treatments were effective in improving gait dynamics but neither of the two proved to be clearly superior to the other. Results suggest their use in the rehabilitation of adolescents who had undergone arthrorisis surgery.