title: Three-dimensional motion analysis of the voluntary elbow movement in subjects with spasticity.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to quantitatively compare the difference in voluntary upper extremity movements between subjects with and without spasticity. Eight normal subjects (mean 26.7 +/- 2.8 years, four males and four females) and seven subjects with spasticity (mean 25.9 +/- 4.3 years, three males and four females) were involved in this study. The subjects sat in an adjustable chair and performed two voluntary tasks involving the elbow joint. Task A was to move the hand between two touch-plates which were mounted 28 cm apart on the surface of the table. Task B was to flex and extend the elbow joint in the sagittal plane with the forearm in neutral position. Reflective markers were attached on the shoulder, the elbow and the wrist. A Peak5 video-based motion analysis system was used to record the positions of the markers in the three-dimensional (3-D) space during the movement tasks. A set of quantitative parameters were used to document the elbow movement. The results revealed that in comparison to normal subjects, subjects with spasticity exhibited a higher average jerk, a larger standard deviation of the coordinates of the markers along the movement path, a larger standard deviation of the angle between the plane of the elbow joint and the horizontal plane, and a longer 3-D path length. The characteristics of spastic elbow movement and the usage of quantitative parameters were discussed.
authors.affiliation: Rehabilitation Engineering Centre, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.forename: A F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Mak
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004550:Elbow / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement; D009128:Muscle Spasticity / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011782:Quadriplegia / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; D014741:Video Recording