Biomechanics of basic activities

Abstract

As excess weight is able to influence the biomechanics of several activities of daily living (walking, standing up, bending, and other movements) causing functional limitations, and possibly predisposing to injury, the quantitative analysis of movement appears a very important tool for the definition of the functional profile in the obese population to then plan appropriate rehabilitation interventions. Three-dimensional motion analysis is a powerful tool for quantitative assessment of movement in patients with movement disorders, including obese patients. In this chapter the applications of quantitative movement analysis in obese individuals are illustrated and reviewed and the experience of a motion analysis laboratory, which routinely applies the quantitative evaluation in obese patients for an improvement of rehabilitation and therapeutic managements, is presented. After a brief overview of the equipment commonly present in a motion analysis laboratory, some experimental setups for the acquisition of movement clinically important for obese individuals (walking, posture, sit to stand, and trunk movement), their application and limitations are described.