In Vivo Measurement of Wrist Movements during the Dart-Throwing Motion Using Inertial Measurement Units.

BACKGROUND: This study investigates the dart-throwing motion (DTM) by comparing an inertial measurement unit-based system previously validated for basic motion tasks with an optoelectronic motion capture system. The DTM is interesting as wrist movement during many activities of daily living occur in this movement plane, but the complex movement is difficult to assess clinically. METHODS: Ten healthy subjects were recorded while performing the DTM with their right wrist using inertial sensors and skin markers. Maximum range of motion obtained by the different systems and the mean absolute difference were calculated. RESULTS: In the flexion-extension plane, both systems calculated a range of motion of 100° with mean absolute differences of 8°, while in the radial-ulnar deviation plane, a mean absolute difference of 17° and range of motion values of 48° for the optoelectronic system and 59° for the inertial measurement units were found. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows the challenge of comparing results of different kinematic motion capture systems for complex movements while also highlighting inertial measurement units as promising for future clinical application in dynamic and coupled wrist movements. Possible sources of error and solutions are discussed.

Comparison of a New Inertial Sensor Based System with an Optoelectronic Motion Capture System for Motion Analysis of Healthy Human Wrist Joints.

This study aims to compare a new inertial measurement unit based system with the highly accurate but complex laboratory gold standard, an optoelectronic motion capture system. Inertial measurement units are sensors based on accelerometers, gyroscopes, and/or magnetometers. Ten healthy subjects were recorded while performing flexion-extension and radial-ulnar deviation movements of their right wrist using inertial sensors and skin markers. Maximum range of motion during these trials and mean absolute difference between the systems were calculated. A difference of 10° ± 5° for flexion-extension and 2° ± 1° for radial-ulnar deviation was found between the two systems with absolute range of motion values of 126° and 50° in the respective axes. A Wilcoxon rank sum test resulted in a no statistical differences between the systems with p-values of 0.24 and 0.62. The observed results are even more precise than reports from previous studies, where differences between 14° and 27° for flexion-extension and differences between 6° and 17° for radial-ulnar deviation were found. Effortless and fast applicability, good precision, and low inter-observer variability make inertial measurement unit based systems applicable to clinical settings.