title: Novel kinematic indices for quantifying movement agility and smoothness after cervical Spinal Cord Injury.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  After cervical Spinal Cord Injury (SCI), upper limb movements made by patients have a lack of smoothness and a hand velocity profile characterized by a high number of velocity peaks.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of the present paper is to propose three novel kinematic indices for quantifying movement agility and smoothness, and to analyze their discriminative capability between healthy and pathological people.
  
  
  METHODS
  18 people, healthy and two groups of patients with cervical SCI, participated in the study. Kinematic indices in relation to movement agility and smoothness were computed from hand trajectories and velocity profiles during the performance of the ADL of drinking from a glass.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The proposed indices discriminated between healthy and SCI people. The results are greater in healthy than SCI people. Both smoothness indices detected significant differences between healthy and both SCI groups. Moreover, the Agility index showed capacity for discriminating between both patients groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The main contribution of this research consists on the proposal of kinematic indices from experimental data, whose results are dimensionless and relative to a pattern of healthy subjects. We hope that kinematic indices proposed are a step toward the standardization of the quantitative assessment of movement characteristics and functional impairments.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomechanics and Technical Aids. National Hospital for Spinal Cord Injury (SESCAM), Finca La Peraleda, Toledo, Spain.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: De los Reyes-Guzmán
authors.affiliation: Occupational Thinks Research Group, Centro Superior de Estudios La Salle (UAM), C/La Salle, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Iris
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Dimbwadyo-Terrer
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomechanics and Technical Aids. National Hospital for Spinal Cord Injury (SESCAM), Finca La Peraleda, Toledo, Spain.
authors.forename: Soraya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pérez-Nombela
authors.affiliation: Department of Special Technologies Applied to Telecommunication. Higher Technical School of Telecommunications Engineering, Technical University of Madrid, University City, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Félix
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Monasterio-Huelin
authors.affiliation: Neural Rehabilitation Group, Cajal Institute, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), C/Doctor Arce, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Diego
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Torricelli
authors.affiliation: Neural Rehabilitation Group, Cajal Institute, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), C/Doctor Arce, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: José Luis
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Pons
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomechanics and Technical Aids. National Hospital for Spinal Cord Injury (SESCAM), Finca La Peraleda, Toledo, Spain.
authors.forename: Angel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gil-Agudo
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000328:Adult; D000465:Algorithms; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D066193:Cervical Cord / Q000293:injuries*; D004326:Drinking; D005260:Female; D006225:Hand; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology*; D034941:Upper Extremity
keywords: Kinematic indices; activities of daily living; functional assessment; neurological diseases; upper limb