title: Underwater treadmill training and gait ability in the normal adult.
abstract: [Purpose] Our working hypothesis is that underwater treadmill training improves normal people's gait ability. [Subjects and Methods] Twenty-five healthy subjects with no orthopedic history of lower extremity were recruited. Gait training is performed using an underwater treadmill (HydroTrack®Underwater Treadmill System, Conray, Inc., Phoenix, AZ, USA), for twenty minutes per session, five sessions a week for four weeks. The water temperature was set at about 33 °C and the depth was fixed to reach between the subjects' xiphoid process and the navel. [Results] After the intervention, step length, velocity, and cadence increased significantly. [Conclusion] This study conducted underwater treadmill training with normal people, with positive effects on gait ability.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical Therapy, College of Rehabilitation Sciences, Daegu University, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Myoung-Kwon
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical Therapy, College of Rehabilitation Sciences, Daegu University, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Si-A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Lee
keywords: Step length; Underwater treadmill; Velocity