Estimation of the Effect of Cadence on Gait Stability in Young and Elderly People using Approximate Entropy Technique

Walking stability of human beings varies with age and reduces in the elderly people. Lesser walking stability causes many falls in the elderly people. In this paper, we have investigated the walking stability of young and elderly subjects using approximate entropy, a non-linear time series analysis method. Our emphasis in this paper is to investigate the walking stability using a portable instrumentation that can be used in the daily life walking. The variability of the acceleration of the centre of gravity is analysed by using approximate entropy technique and is used as an index to assess the walking stability of young and elderly people. By using the proposed method, it is possible to assess the walking stability of the elderly subjects and it is observed that the walking stability of elderly subjects decreases in the lateral direction. Moreover it is also possible to suggest a walking speed to the elderly subjects that can improve their walking stability.