Facilitators and barriers for participation in sports and physical activity for children with lower-limb absence: A systematic review.

Sports and recreational activities offer physical and psychological benefits to children with limb absence. Understanding what facilitators and barriers exist for the participation in sports and physical activity is vital to aid stakeholders to continue enabling facilitators and develop means to tackle existing barriers so that all children with lower-limb absence can participate in sport and physical activity as they wish. The aim of this systematic review was to identify facilitators and barriers that children with lower-limb absence experience when wanting to participate in sports and physical activity.

A public and patient consultation process as an aid to design a person-centred randomized clinical trial.

Background: Involving patients and members of the public, together with researchers, in decisions about how studies are designed and conducted can create a study that is more person-centred. The aim of this consultation process was to explore ways of designing a study which takes the person into consideration for the randomized clinical study entitled 'Biomechanical Effects of Manual Therapy-A Feasibility Study' using the novel approach of usability testing.

Design: Patient and public volunteers were sought with experience of low back pain.

Stakeholder involvement in the development of trial material for a clinical trial.

Background: Stakeholder involvement includes not just patients and public, but also those delivering treatment for example clinicians and students. Each stakeholder brings unique experiences to the process. The aim of this stakeholder exercise was to explore readability and understanding of the trial material for the future trial to be conducted by the authors: Biomechanical Effects of Manual Therapy-A Feasibility Study.

Dynamic characterisation of Össur Flex-Run prosthetic feet for a more informed prescription.

Background:: The current method of prescribing composite running-specific energy-storing-and-returning feet is subjective and is based only on the amputee's static body weight/mass.

Objectives:: The aim was to investigate their dynamic characteristics and create a relationship between these dynamic data and the prescription of foot.

Study Design:: Experimental Assessment.

Development of a 3D workspace shoulder assessment tool incorporating electromyography and an inertial measurement unit-a preliminary study.

Traditional shoulder range of movement (ROM) measurement tools suffer from inaccuracy or from long experimental setup times. Recently, it has been demonstrated that relatively low-cost wearable inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensors can overcome many of the limitations of traditional motion tracking systems. The aim of this study is to develop and evaluate a single IMU combined with an electromyography (EMG) sensor to monitor the 3D reachable workspace with simultaneous measurement of deltoid muscle activity across the shoulder ROM.

Systematic Review of Studies Examining Transtibial Prosthetic Socket Pressures with Changes in Device Alignment.

Suitable lower-limb prosthetic sockets must provide an adequate distribution of the pressures created from standing and ambulation. A systematic search for articles reporting socket pressure changes in response to device alignment perturbation was carried out, identifying 11 studies. These were then evaluated using the American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists guidelines for a state-of-the-science review.

An Investigation Into the Measurement and Prediction of Mechanical Stiffness of Lower Limb Prostheses Used for Running.

Two energy return prosthesis are subjected to three different statically applied loading methods. This initial study proposes that statically applied loading to a sport prosthesis using several controlled methods were statistically robust enough to derive a mechanical stiffness value. However, any predicted stiffness is drawn into question when allowing any movement of the distal end.

Sprinting with an amputation: Some race-based lower-limb step observations.

Background: T44 sprinting with an amputation is still in a state of relative infancy. Future scope for athletic training and prosthetic limb development may be assisted with a better understanding of information derived from T44 athletes when under race-based conditions.

Objectives: To investigate the behaviour of step count and step frequency when under competitive conditions.

Sprint prostheses used at the Paralympics: a proposal for an assessment method to maintain fairness.

Background: Unique to sport with a disability such as those performed at the Paralympics, the need to improve the performance of lower limb prostheses can conflict with the need to provide an equal opportunity to win whilst still needing to encourage and maximise participation.

Objectives: This paper extends previous research by attempting to propose a method suitable for sports governing bodies to help any functional assessment of sprinting lower limb prosthesis technology in the future.

Study Design: The study comprises two elements: 1) A historical review and evaluation of drop jump assessment techniques.

Static and dynamic pressure prediction for prosthetic socket fitting assessment utilising an inverse problem approach.

Objective: It has been recognised in a review of the developments of lower-limb prosthetic socket fitting processes that the future demands new tools to aid in socket fitting. This paper presents the results of research to design and clinically test an artificial intelligence approach, specifically inverse problem analysis, for the determination of the pressures at the limb/prosthetic socket interface during stance and ambulation.

Methods: Inverse problem analysis is based on accurately calculating the external loads or boundary conditions that can generate a known amount of strain, stresses or displacements at pre-determined locations on a structure.

The fair use of lower-limb running prostheses: A Delphi study.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of lower-limb running prostheses and stakeholders' perceptions of fairness in relation to their use in competitive disability sport. A Delphi study was conducted over three rounds to solicit expert opinion in a developing area of knowledge. High levels of consensus were obtained.