Effectiveness of gait-retraining with auditory feedback on pain and lower body kinematics in injured recreational runners

Abnormal hip and knee mechanics are often implicated in runners with history of injury. We considered evaluating a simple gait-retraining protocol, using auditory-external feedback, in runners with running-related injuries and abnormal hip and knee mechanics. The effect of using external-feedback may have been more profound if the content of instruction had been relevant to mechanics. Therefore, the present study examined the effect of auditory-external feedback on the mechanics and pain of recreational runners who have running-related injuries.

Twenty injured recreational runners’ participants in this study. One session was for pre-test and the next session was for auditory-external feedback on their pelvic alignment during running gait, which was provided to the subjects as they ran on a treadmill. 24 hours after the training session participants had to retry the test without feedback as the retention session. Variable of interest included pain, peak hip adduction, hip internal rotation, contralateral pelvic drop, and knee abduction. Hip and knee mechanics were assessed both pre- and post-retraining, and analyses were repeated at the retention session. Data were analyzed via one-way ANOVA.

Subjects reduced significantly peak hip adduction and internal rotation, contralateral pelvic drop, and knee abduction during running pre-test and post-retraining (p <.03). There were also significant improvements in pain(P<0.001). At 24 hours post-retraining, most mechanics were not maintained and subjects don’t have a significant improvement between pre-test and retention session except for pain, which was maintained in retention session(p=0.04). Although not statically significant, all data were reported increased following the retention, except contralateral pelvic drop (p=.03).

Auditory -external feedback was effective in improving pain and the mechanics of gait patterns immediately after being instructed. But motor learning had not occurred because this improvement had not been maintained, although the result suggests that increasing intervention sessions might be effective.