Measurement System for Evaluating Dynamic Wrist Workloads and CTS Risk

Abstract

This study presents an evaluation of measurement system investigating the relationship between dynamic wrist workloads including posture, force and repetition, and median nerve function, hence, CTS risk. The performance of a biaxial electrogoniometer and force sensor for generating dynamic wrist workloads were evaluated with custom made calibration fixtures. The results for electrogoniometer measurement showed that non-repeatability and non-linearity were 4.0% and 1.6%, respectively, in the flexion/extension plane, and 3.3% and 0.9%, respectively, in the radial/ulnar plane. The non-repeatability and non-linearity for the force sensors were 14.3% and 1.6%, respectively. These results demonstrated that the electrogoniometer and force sensors are useful for future study. The performance of EMG machine for measuring nerve conduction was also examined and the results was consistent across day and trial. Further research is quantifying the relationship between dynamic wrist workloads with resultant changes in motor and sensory conduction function in the median nerve.

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