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Go to Editorial ManagerSpinal alignment examination procedures are frequently employed to assess spinal deformities. The spine plays a crucial role in maintaining the biomechanical functionality of the skeletal system. It protects the spinal cord and facilitates movement, among other vital functions. Various methods, including radiography and non-invasive techniques such as goniometer, inclinometer and kyphometer, have been employed to assess spine alignment qualitatively. Nevertheless, these methods are characterized by a high radiation dose and require significant time. Consequently, this study aimed to develop and create a portable, user-friendly, radiation-free computer-assisted electromechanical device to assess spinal deformities. This device is designed to evaluate sagittal spinal alignment by estimating the angle between two vertebrae for the segmental and global thoracic and lumbar regions, and the length of the spine. This study highlighted the importance of the method in evaluating spinal alignment. The MPU-6050 sensor was employed to record the angle between the two vertebrae, while the rotary encoder was utilized to measure the length of the spine. Subsequently, the data was transmitted to a computer over a Bluetooth module connection, following processing by the Arduino Nano microcontroller. The proposed system was employed on five healthy adult subjects to evaluate their standing posture in the sagittal plane, namely in the upright, flexion, and extension positions. The resulting parameters that define spinal alignment are provided. The suggested system offers the benefits of simplicity, portability, and cost-effectiveness, allowing for rapid and accurate assessment of sagittal spinal alignment. It enables quick clinical assessment and provides few health risks to the patient, leading to correct diagnosis.
Kids carrying heavy loads as a part of everyday activity may be related to bend their trunks forward to maintain body posture and balance while walking. This study was to determine a correlation between the weight of a child's backpack, their body weight, and certain features of their body posture. The study group consisted of 6 children, in age of primary school. The anthropometry (age, length, weight) were taken for each volunteers. A school backpack was specially built for the present study. Walking gait was filmed in three cases: (zero kg, 3 kg and 6 kg) backpack.Posture was analyzed by using (Kenova and MATLAB) computer programs.The results show that the forward inclination of the trunk increases when the load and the walking distance are increased, this forward inclination segment may impose greater stress over the vertebral column (ligaments and intervertebral disks) and increase the risk of back problems.Spine and back health may be adversely affected by load carriage and it may be important to use spinal curvature as a measure of posture for load carriage. This study shows that the backpack load cause a lumbar asymmetry by 10 to 20 degree according to the load which has a significant amount of back pain in kids.