title: A simple device to monitor flexion and lateral bending of the lumbar spine.
abstract: Monitoring compliance with exercise and motivating patients with lower back pain to perform prescribed exercise regimens are considerable tasks. The objective of this study was to develop and test a low-cost device that can be used by a patient at home to both record and provide real-time biofeedback of lumbar position in the midsagittal and frontal planes during exercises. Our device utilizes strain gages on a thin stainless steel beam to measure lumbar flexion-extension and an optical mouse sensor attached to the end of the blade to measure lateral bending. In comparison tests with a standard electrogoniometer, our device was shown to be accurate within 3 degrees in both the sagittal and frontal planes in healthy subjects. Furthermore, users were capable of reapplying the device themselves and obtaining measurements that were repeatable within 4 degrees in both planes. The capability of this simple device to accurately measure lumbar spine position in a nonlaboratory setting makes it well suited as a tool for providing feedback on exercise performance to both patients and clinicians.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA.
authors.forename: Gabriel J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Donatell
authors.forename: David W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Meister
authors.forename: Jeremy R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: O'Brien
authors.forename: John S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Thurlow
authors.forename: John G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Webster
authors.forename: Life
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Fellow
authors.forename: Frank J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Salvi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D010808:Physical Examination / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular / Q000502:physiology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014159:Transducers