Validity of sagittal thoracolumbar curvature measurement using a non-radiographic surface topography method

Initial study on an expert system for spine diseases screening using inertial measurement unit

In recent times, widely understood spine diseases have advanced to one of the most urgetn problems where quick diagnosis and treatment are needed. To diagnose its specifics (e.g. to decide whether this is a scoliosis or sagittal imbalance) and assess its extend, various kind of imaging diagnostic methods (such as X-Ray, CT, MRI scan or ST) are used. However, despite their common use, some may be regarded as (to a level) invasive methods and there are cases where there are contraindications to using them. Besides, which is even more of a problem, these are very expensive methods and whilst their use for pure diagnostic purposes is absolutely valid, then due to their cost, they cannot rather be considered as tools which would be equally valid for bad posture screening programs purposes. This paper provides an initial evaluation of the alternative approach to the spine diseases diagnostic/screening using inertial measurement unit and we propose policy-based computing as the core for the inference systems. Although the methodology presented herein is potentially applicable to a variety of spine diseases, in the nearest future we will focus specifically on sagittal imbalance detection.

Comparison of Inclinometer and Radiological Measurement in the Evaluation of Columna Vertebralis Movements

Spinal movements can often be measured during clinical, physical and functional evaluation of individuals. One of the preferred tools for the measurement of these movements is inclinometers. Considering that valid scientific methods should be used for musculoskeletal assessment, the aim of this study is to conduct a literature review on the validity of inclinometers to measure spinal movements. The PubMed electronic database was searched using the keywords "inclinometer", "spine", "vertebrae" and "columna vertebralis". The study analysis process included reading titles, abstracts and full texts. After checking the established criteria, six articles met the criteria for inclusion in the review. The design of all included studies was a combination of radiographic measurement of the spine and angular measurements obtained by inclinometer. Variability was observed in the data collection methods used and the results of the studies. It is recommended that inclinometers be used by health professionals based on scientific evidence, and the results and methodological aspects used in validity studies of these tools should be taken into account.