Human rolling, as turning in bed, is a fundamental activity of daily living. A quantitative analysis of rolling could help identify the neuromusculoskeletal disorders that prohibit rolling and develop interventions for individuals who cannot roll. This study sought to determine whether crossing the arms over the chest would alter fundamental coordination patterns when rolling. Kinematic data were collected from 24 subjects as they rolled with and without their arms crossed over their chest. Crossing the arms decreased the mean peak angular velocities of the shoulders (p = .001) and pelvis (p = .013) and influenced the mean duration of the roll (p = .057). There were no fundamental differences in shoulder and pelvis coordination when rolling with the arms crossed over the chest, implying that the arms may not have a major role in rolling.
Keywords: biomechanics; repositioning; upper extremities.