Recent studies have suggested the biomechanical subtasks of walking can be produced using a reduced set of co-excited muscles or modules. Individuals post-stroke often exhibit poor inter-muscular coordination characterized by poor timing and merging of modules that are normally independent in healthy individuals. However, whether locomotor therapy can influence module quality (timing and composition) and whether these improvements lead to improved walking performance is unclear. Further, it is unknown whether the same modules that produce self-selected walking can also produce the execution of different mobility tasks.

In this study, experimental analyses were used to compare module quality pre- and post-therapy. In subjects with four modules pre- and post-therapy, locomotor training resulted in improved timing of the ankle plantarflexor module and a more extended paretic leg angle that allowed the subjects to walk faster with more symmetrical propulsion. In addition, subjects with three modules pre-therapy increased their number of modules and improved walking performance post-therapy. Thus, locomotor training was found to influence module composition and timing, which can lead to improvements in walking performance.

Experimental and simulation analyses were then used to characterize modular organization in specific mobility tasks (walking at self-selected speed with maximum cadence, maximum step length, and maximum step height). We found that the same underlying modules (number and composition) in each subject that contribute to steadystate walking also contribute to the different mobility tasks. In healthy subjects, module timing, but not composition, changed when the task demands were altered. This adaptability in module timing, in addition to the ability to adapt to the changing task demands, was limited in the post-stroke subjects. The primary difference in the execution of the walking biomechanical subtasks occurred in the control of the leg during pre-swing and swing. To increase cadence, the ankle plantarflexors and dorsiflexors contributed more power to the ipsilateral leg in pre-swing and swing, respectively. To increase step height, the hamstrings provided energy to the ipsilateral leg that accelerated the leg into swing in pre-swing and swing. These results provide a first step towards linking impaired module patterns to mobility task performance in persons post-stroke.