The Study of Biomechanical Gait Characteristics in Intellectual Disabilities: A Systematic Review

Gait is functionally highly relevant aspects of motor performance. This aim of this study was to determine biomechanical characteristics gait in intellectual disabilities during 1995-2017. In this systematic review, all quantitative and qualitative studies that related to gait and balance characteristics of intellectual disabilities were retrieved from Persian databases (Magiran, SID, Google scholar) and all full text articles with keywords intellectual disability, gait were retrieved from English databases (PubMed, EBSCO, Science Direct, ProQuest). Then, 16 papers selected from 35 papers. Also, “Data Extraction Form" which developed based on research aim, was used for data collection. 14 of 16 articles (87.5%) were quantitative and 2 articles (12.5%) were qualitative. The results showed that intellectual disabilities were related to gait disorders, especially step length, stride length, shorter step width and lower velocity. It also has kinetic and kinematic disorders, including reduction of the ankle production power in the push-off phase, increased hip and knee flexion at stance phase, knee limitation and plantar ankle flexion at the heel contact and joint stiffness during the gait. Gait disorders in intellectual disability is a serious problem. Preventive measures are recommended to correct gait disorders and reduce complications.