Justin Scott Presented on:
Posture Effects on Thigh Tissue Properties
Wheelchair users sit for the majority of their day causing high tissue stresses and in many cases tissue damage. Yet mechanical properties of the affected tissue in the thighs are not fully defined. Limited work has been conducted to identify in vivo tissue material properties in the seated position, and published work focuses on ex vivo properties or data collected from the prone position. Accurate material parameters for the thighs in all postures are needed for the design of devices that interface with users (such as wheelchairs). Thus, the goal of this work was to identify the material properties (force-deflection data sets) of the thigh regions and compare these properties across three postures: seated, prone, and the crawling position (crawling is a position used by therapists). For all thigh locations the prone position was significantly different than the seated and crawling positions (Figure 1). The seated and crawling positions experienced greater than thirty millimeters of deflection at forty Newtons of force, while none of the deflections in the prone position exceeded twenty millimeters. For the distal thigh, the seated and crawling positions were statistically the same, while the prone position was always statistically different from the seated and crawling positions.
Amber Vocelle Presented on:
The Effect of Hand Exercises on Thumb Function in Individuals with Thumb Carpometacarpal Arthritis
Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common degenerative joint disease in the U.S., affecting approximately 27 million American adults. When OA develops in the carpometacarpal (CMC) joint located at the base of the thumb, it can significantly impair hand function including the ability to open jars, self-administer medications, and grip keys and door handles. One of the mainstays of thumb CMC OA treatment is hand therapy and exercises. Several studies have investigated the effect of hand exercises on hand function in individuals with thumb CMC OA with mixed results. Additionally most of these studies solely self-administered questionnaire scores to determine treatment effect. In this pilot study, we use thumb range of motion (ROM) and force application to measure the effect of a six week prescribed hand exercise regimen on hand function in participants with mild to moderate thumb CMC OA. We hypothesized that exercise therapy would result in increased CMC joint ROM and thumb force application. Exercises did not consistently increase thumb CMC joint ROM, but did increase thumb force application in all participants. Additional testing is necessary to determine the statistical significance of this work.
Josh Drost Presented on: