Comparison of Lower Extremity Biomechanics and Effort in Male and Female Military Members During a Standardized Load Carriage Task

Abstract

Objective: To understand the effect of load carriage on knee moment features linked to development/progression of knee osteoarthritis and whether there are differences between males/females. Methods: 24 military members(14 male, 10 female) walked at self-selected speed (loaded/unloaded) and fixed speed(loaded) on an instrumented treadmill. Motion capture cameras and custom software captured, analyzed, and calculated discrete knee moment features. Repeated measures analysis of variance tested for between condition differences for the total sample. Confidence intervals(95%) were calculated to determine between sex and between conditions within sex differences. Results: Greater knee moment features were found for loaded versus unloaded conditions. Three joint moment features were different between loaded conditions. One moment feature was different between sexes; males/females did not have the same between condition pairwise differences for three moment features. Conclusion: Loaded marching and increased speed increased knee moment features. Preliminary data indicate differences in joint moment features for males and females.