NCT07857967Recruiting
Quadriceps Muscle Activity and Gait Kinematics in Patients With Post-Stroke Stiff-Knee Gait Compared With Healthy Controls
Comparison of Quadriceps Electromyographic Activity and Gait Kinematics Between Patients With Post-Stroke Stiff-Knee Gait and Healthy Controls
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Last updated 5 Oct 2026
Brief summary (registry, in English)
Stiff-knee gait (SKG) is a frequent gait abnormality in people with post-stroke hemiparesis and is characterized by insufficient knee flexion during the swing phase of walking. One potential mechanism is inappropriate activation of one or more heads of the quadriceps during pre-swing and early swing. This observational study will compare quadriceps electromyographic activity and gait kinematics between adults with chronic post-stroke hemiparesis with SKG and healthy adult controls. The study will include 30 participants with post-stroke SKG and 24 healthy controls. Quantitative gait analysis will be performed using three-dimensional motion analysis together with electromyography (EMG). Ultrasound-guided fine-wire electrodes will record the activity of all four heads of the quadriceps: rectus femoris, vastus intermedius, vastus medialis, and vastus lateralis. Healthy controls will be assessed while walking at a slow speed selected to provide a reference condition that is comparable with the walking speeds typically observed in participants with post-stroke hemiparesis. The primary outcome is the difference in fine-wire EMG activation patterns of the four quadriceps heads between participants with post-stroke SKG and healthy controls, with particular attention to pre-swing and early swing. Secondary outcomes will assess differences in gait kinematics between groups, including peak knee flexion during the swing phase and knee flexion-extension patterns throughout the gait cycle. The study aims to improve understanding of the muscular mechanisms underlying post-stroke SKG and to establish relevant fine-wire EMG reference patterns for all four quadriceps heads in healthy individuals walking at a speed comparable with patients with hemiparesis.
- Status (registry)
- Recruiting
- Study type
- Observational
- Enrollment
- 50 (estimated)
- First submitted
- 21 Sept 2026
- Start date
- 15 Apr 2025
- Primary completion date
- 30 Nov 2026
- Lead sponsor
- Frédéric Chantraine
- Diseases
- Stroke
- NCT number
- NCT07857967
What you commit to
- Study type: Observational
- Planned participants: 50
- From 15 Apr 2025 to the primary completion date, 30 Nov 2026
- 1 site in 1 country
- Visits and tests: ask the trial team, the registry does not list them
Built from the registry fields of ClinicalTrials.gov. It describes the study, not your situation.
Who cannot take part
Copied verbatim from ClinicalTrials.gov and grouped by topic. Only the trial team decides who can take part.
Prior treatment
- Medication likely to affect gait.
Other illness
- Other disease or history of disease likely to influence gait, including peripheral neurological, cerebellar, vestibular, rheumatological, orthopedic, or metabolic disorders.
- Visual or hearing impairment.
Other
- Botulinum toxin injection into the lower-limb muscles within the preceding 6 months
- Use of illicit substances within 24 hours before the gait assessment.
Who the study is looking for
- Clinical diagnosis of cerebral stroke with hemiparesis.
- Age greater than 18 years.
- Right- or left-sided hemiparesis following stroke.
- Stroke occurred at least 6 months before assessment.
- Able to walk independently without a technical walking aid.
- Reduced knee flexion during the swing phase of gait (stiff-knee gait) identified by visual observation by an experienced clinician.
- Age greater than 18 years.
- No pathology likely to alter gait.
- No abnormality of knee kinematics identified during visual observation by an experienced clinician.
Age in the registry: 18 years to - · Sex: All · Accepts healthy volunteers
Sites (1)
Sites in registry order. Pick your city on the disease page to sort them by distance.
| Site | City | Country | Site status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Centre National de Rééducation Fonctionnelle et de Réadaptation Coordinator of this site? Confirm its status | Luxembourg | Luxembourg | Recruiting |
This page is information, not medical advice. Discuss any trial with your doctor.