ABSTRACT
Stability of human is capability to maintain the orientation and position in the specific area. So walking is essential to maintain of stability and balance in order to offer a basic movement and body locomotion. Several strategies can improve stability during locomotion including shoe constructions that provide artificial surfaces into uneven surfaces. Recent results indicated that lower extremity muscles were in more activity to keep the stability in a given unbalance situation than normal situation (Nigg et al., 2006). Some researches reported the functional walking shoes could help the reduction of sports injury and contribute to the rehabilitation of knee or ankle joint (Nigg et al., 2006; Romkes et al., 2006). The walking shoe was found lower ground reaction force and loading rate than a normal shoe because of a curved motion of a gentle slope with rounding outsole (Choi, 2003). A research showed that ankle joint angle was significant difference between pre and post training for 12 weeks from Park et al. (2006). According Vernon et al. (2004), ankle plantarflexion was decreased in initial stance phase and joint load was decreased by reducing of lower limb moment. A shoe can be different to the role and function depending on structure of outsole. In fact, scientific determination and evaluation is placed under the lack of circumstances in the rocker heel angle of most walking shoes developed in Korea. Thus the angle of optical rocker shoe is necessary for walking shoe design to examine. Also we need to investigate effects on a trunk and lower limb among the difference rocker heel shoes. This study was aim to investigate the effects of rocker heel angle during walking on gait mechanics and muscle activity of lower extremity.
