Gait Analysis From a Single Ear-Worn Sensor: Reliability and Clinical Evaluation for Orthopaedic Patients

Objective assessment of detailed gait patterns after orthopaedic surgery is important for post-surgical follow-up and rehabilitation. The purpose of this paper is to assess the use of a single ear-worn sensor for clinical gait analysis. A reliability mea- sure is devised for indicating the confidence level of the estimated gait events, allowing it to be used in free-walking environments and for facilitating clinical assessment of orthopaedic patients after surgery. Patient groups prior to or following anterior cruciate lig- ament (ACL) reconstruction and knee replacement were recruited to assess the proposed method. The ability of the sensor for detailed longitudinal analysis is demonstrated with a group of patients after lower limb reconstruction by considering parameters such as tem- poral and force-related gait asymmetry derived from gait events. The results suggest that the ear-worn sensor can be used for objec- tive gait assessments of orthopaedic patients without the require- ment and expense of an elaborate laboratory setup for gait anal- ysis. It significantly simplifies the monitoring protocol and opens the possibilities for home-based remote patient assessment.