Analysis of neck muscle activity and comparison of head movement and body movement during rotational motion.

The neck is a very delicate part of the body that is highly prone to whiplash injuries, during jerk. A lot of the research relating to whiplash injuries performed to date has been tested in environments with linear motions and have mostly applied their work to car collisions. Whiplash injuries can also affect disabled individuals during falls, bed transfers, and while travelling in wheelchairs.

Seated balance during pitch motion with and without visual input.

The study of seated balance and postural control, specifically in relation to wheelchair propulsion, has been an area of interest for quite some time. In biomedical and rehabilitation research this has led to the potential of treatment and prevention of spinal cord and musculoskeletal injuries. To date, little study has been done which analyzes the activity of lower trunk muscles for seated balance, as opposed to upper limb and shoulder muscles.

Arm movement effect on balance.

The background research shows a high incidence of falls and loss of balance related injuries, which cause serious consequences to individual health and quality of life, as well as substantial healthcare impact in services and costs. The literature review emphasizes that arm movements have a potentially significant effect on balance, and indentifies the use of balance boards as a relevant and meaningful tool for dynamic balance evaluation. The primary objective of this initial study was to develop a method to test and evaluate the effect of arm movements on the maintenance of postural stability.

Evaluation of protective gloves and working techniques for reducing hand-arm vibration exposure in the workplace.

Objectives: Operation of handheld power tools results in exposure to hand-arm vibrations, which over time lead to numerous health complications. The objective of this study was to evaluate protective equipment and working techniques for the reduction of vibration exposure.

Methods: Vibration transmissions were recorded during different work techniques: with one- and two-handed grip, while wearing protective gloves (standard, air and anti-vibration gloves) and while holding a foam-covered tool handle.

Visualization of trunk muscle synergies during sitting perturbations using self-organizing maps (SOM).

The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the use of the self-organizing map (SOM) method for visualization, modeling, and comparison of trunk neuromuscular synergies during perturbed sitting. Thirteen participants were perturbed at the level of the sternum, in eight directions during sitting. Electromyographic (EMG) responses of ten trunk muscles involved in postural control were recorded.

Wireless vibrotactile feedback system for postural response improvement.

This paper presents an evaluation of a real-time wireless body sensor network for the improvement of postural balance response. The system senses body sway using accelerometers and provides vibrotactile feedback to multiple points on the inner forearm, allowing the subject to obtain a clear indication of imbalanced movements within their center of gravity and respective surroundings. The wireless body sensor network is ergonomic, allowing the subject to feel comfortable and experience unconfined movements during its use.

Arm movement improves performance in clinical balance and mobility tests.

Previous studies have suggested that arm movements can contribute to preventing the loss of balance or falls, and that aging affects the functions of arm movements. Clinical balance and mobility tests may be able to detect such aging effects. As the first step to approaching this question, the purpose of this pilot study was to investigate the effects of arm movements on the performance of clinical balance and mobility tests.

Virtual reality applications in improving postural control and minimizing falls.

Maintaining balance under all conditions is an absolute requirement for humans. Orientation in space and balance maintenance requires inputs from the vestibular, the visual, the proprioceptive and the somatosensory systems. All the cues coming from these systems are integrated by the central nervous system (CNS) to employ different strategies for orientation and balance.