Measuring center of pressure signals to quantify human balance using multivariate multiscale entropy by designing a force platform

Copyright @ 2013 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).To assess the improvement of human body balance, a low cost and portable measuring device of center of pressure (COP), known as center of pressure and complexity monitoring system (CPCMS), has been developed for data logging and analysis. In order to prove that the system can estimate the different magnitude of different sways in comparison with the commercial Advanced Mechanical Technology Incorporation (AMTI) system, four sway tests have been developed (i.e., eyes open, eyes closed, eyes open with water pad, and eyes closed with water pad) to produce different sway displacements. Firstly, static and dynamic tests were conducted to investigate the feasibility of the system. Then, correlation tests of the CPCMS and AMTI systems have been compared with four sway tests. The results are within the acceptable range. Furthermore, multivariate empirical mode decomposition (MEMD) and enhanced multivariate multiscale entropy (MMSE) analysis methods have been used to analyze COP data reported by the CPCMS and compare it with the AMTI system. The improvements of the CPCMS are 35% to 70% (open eyes test) and 60% to 70% (eyes closed test) with and without water pad. The AMTI system has shown an improvement of 40% to 80% (open eyes test) and 65% to 75% (closed eyes test). The results indicate that the CPCMS system can achieve similar results to the commercial product so it can determine the balance.National Science Council (NSC) of Taiwan and the Center for Dynamical Biomarkers and Translational Medicine, National Central University, Taiwan (which is sponsored by the NSC)

Actualities of balance diagnostics system model development for persons with disabilities

In Latvia so far there have not been made comprehensive studies to provide balance function diagnostics for people with disabilities, which would have to continue with further creation of appropriate system. However, Latvian researchers developed methods and technology for the rehabilitation and health improvement. At the same time it is also recognized that there is a lack of dedicated efficient and widely accessible for patients systems, equipment and tools to make balance function and dysfunction diagnostics, as well an improvement of the patients’ movement capabilities. This position paper gives a brief overview about the latest technical engineering solution trends and developments in the world, which could be suited and developed to create the conformable new, rather simple, accessible and cheap system. Such system will have to ensure the diagnostics of balance functions of the persons with disabilities and encourage them to use mentioned equipment for testing and training of their balance and movement functionality

Modelling and Characterization of Force Plate Measurements on Subacute Post-Concussion Subjects Through Machine Learning

Mild traumatic brain injuries (mTBI) are one of the leading causes of neurological disorders. Symptoms after a mTBI may include headache, dizziness, and balance issues, among others, with vestibular disorders observed in up to 80% of these patients. These symptoms generally resolve in the first few weeks after the injury, but some patients may develop persistent symptoms. Patients with Post-Concussion Vestibular Dysfunction (PCVD) may present alterations in the peripheral and central vestibular systems. These alterations may then affect postural control and stability, which coupled with visual motion sensitivity, cause the prolonged symptomatology. In this study, we evaluated postural control strategies in Healthy Controls (HC) and Subacute PCVD patients (ST) to identify underlying changes in the postural control system. Sensory Organization Test (SOT) was employed to measure Centre Of Pressure (COP) signals under different sensory conditions. Analysis of traditional linear metrics and entropy metrics of the COP signals demonstrated significant differences between groups. Complexity index was reduced for the ST group during “Eyes Closed” condition, with a median value of 7.93 vs 9.59 for the HC in the Medial-Lateral direction (p=0.002), and 5.17 vs 6.22 Anterior-Posterior direction (p=0.0009). Moreover, analysis of these metrics through machine learning, showed indications of interactions between these variables that may be predictive of the health condition of the patient. These results remark the potential of these metrics for evaluating changes in postural dynamics in patients with PCVD, and opens a new path for analysis of the COP signals with the support of machine learning models.M.S

Etude expérimentale des dynamiques temporelles du comportement normal et pathologique chez le rat et la souris

155 p.Modern neuroscience highlights the need for designing sophisticated behavioral readout of internal cognitive states. From a thorough analysis of classical behavioral test, my results supports the hypothesis that sensory ypersensitivity might be the cause of other behavioural deficits, and confirm the potassium channel BKCa as a potentially relevant molecular target for the development of drug medication against Fragile X Syndrome/Autism Spectrum Disorders. I have also used an innovative device, based on pressure sensors that can non-invasively detect the slightest animal movement with unprecedented sensitivity and time resolution, during spontaneous behaviour. Analysing this signal with sophisticated computational tools, I could demonstrate the outstanding potential of this methodology for behavioural phenotyping in general, and more specifically for the investigation of pain, fear or locomotion in normal mice and models of neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders

Effects of Kinesiology Tape on Non-linear Center of Mass Dispersion During the Y Balance Test

Static taping of the ankle or knee joint is a common method of reducing risk of injury by providing mechanical stability. An alternative taping technique employs kinesiology tape, which has the additional benefit of improving functionality by stimulating proprioception. There is substantial disagreement whether kinesiology tape shows significant differences in proprioception and postural stability as compared to rigid/static tape when applied at the lower limb. The current study investigated the effects of kinesiology tape and static tape during a Y Balance Test on center of mass as an indicator for postural stability. Forty-one individuals, free of injury, performed the Y Balance Test under the three conditions; no tape, kinesiology tape, and static tape applied at the lower limb to the quadriceps, triceps surae and ankle joint. All participants completed the Y Balance Test to determine whether any significant differences could be observed using center of mass movement as a surrogate measure for balance and proprioception. The Minkowski-Bouligand and box-counting fractal dimension analyses were used as measures of the dynamic changes in the center of mass whilst undertaking the Y Balance Test. Statistical analyses included the Kruskal Wallis test to allow for non-normally distributed data and a Bonferroni corrected pairwise T-test as a post hoc test to ascertain pairwise differences between the three taping conditions. Significance was set at 0.05. The fractal analyses of the dynamic changes in center of mass showed significant differences between the control and both the static tape and kinesiology tape groups (p = 0.021 and 0.009, respectively). The current study developed a novel measure of dynamic changes in the center of mass during a set movement that indicated real-time processing effects during a balance task associated with the type of taping used to enhance postural stability

Development and Validation of Wearable Systems for Human Postural Sway Analysis

Falls are the most common cause of injury in older adults. Around one-third of senior citizens (aged 65 or over) experience at least one fall per year, and the frequency increases by 66 percent for those aged over 85 years. Nowadays wearable systems are gaining popularity to perform fall risk assessments and investigating fall events in natural environments. However all commercially existing systems are expensive, thus there is paucity of knowledge to develop and validate inexpensive wearable systems for fall risk assessment in older adults. An early risk of fall assessment could help health care professionals to intervene earlier. This study investigates the processes involved with designing an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) including the rational behind the choice of parts and assembly of the board. The final sensor developed (Mini-Logger) was validated for sway acquisition in laboratory setting. Further the novel sensor was tested on healthy adults for its sensitivity with postural sway at 12 different standing conditions. The results from this study could help in development of inexpensive wearable systems which could identify older individuals at risk of falling for proactive fall prevention. Thus reduction in falls will improve the quality of life of older adults and thereby reduce healthcare costs

Proceedings XXI Congresso SIAMOC 2021

XXI Congresso Annuale della SIAMOC, modalità telematica il 30 settembre e il 1° ottobre 2021. Come da tradizione, il congresso vuole essere un’occasione di arricchimento e mutuo scambio, dal punto di vista scientifico e umano. Verranno toccati i temi classici dell’analisi del movimento, come lo sviluppo e l’applicazione di metodi per lo studio del movimento nel contesto clinico, e temi invece estremamente attuali, come la teleriabilitazione e il telemonitoraggio