Mindy F. Levin

Background Coordination between arm movements and postural adjustments is crucial for reaching-while-stepping tasks involving both anticipatory postural adjustments (APAs) and compensatory movements to effectively propel the whole-body forward so that the hand can reach the target. Stroke impairs the ability to coordinate the action of multiple body segments but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Objective. To determine the effects of stroke on reaching performance and APAs during whole-body reaching. Methods We tested arm reaching in standing (stand-reach) and reaching-while-stepping (step-reach; 15 trials/condition) in individuals with chronic stroke (n = 18) and age-matched healthy subjects (n = 13). Whole-body kinematics and kinetic data were collected during the tasks. The primary outcome measure for step-reach was “gain” ( g), defined as the extent to which the hip displacement contributing to hand motion was neutralized by appropriate changes in upper limb movements ( g = 1 indicates complete compensation) and APAs measured as spatio-temporal profiles of the center-of-pressure shifts preceding stepping. Results Individuals with stroke had lower gains and altered APAs compared to healthy controls. In addition, step onset was delayed, and the timing of endpoint, trunk, and foot movement offset was prolonged during step-reach compared to healthy controls. Those with milder sensorimotor impairment and better balance function had higher gains. Altered APAs were also related to reduced balance function. Conclusions Altered APAs and prolonged movement offset in stroke may lead to a greater reliance on compensatory arm movements. Altered APAs in individuals with stroke may be associated with a reduced shift of referent body configuration during the movement