Biomechanical Investigation of Optimal Wheelchair Transfer Techniques

Principle Investigator: Megan Yarnall, B.S.

Funding Source: Center for Injury Research and Control (Center for Disease Control and Prevention)

June 2006-June 2007

Wheelchair transfers have been associated with the high prevalence of upper limb pain among persons with SCI. This study examines the upper body biomechanics of five different lateral transfer techniques. Twenty subjects with paraplegia will perform each transfer from their own manual wheelchair while motion analysis equipment records their movements, and force plates and a load cell measure incidental forces. An inverse dynamics model will calculate forces and moments occurring at the shoulder for the five methods of transferring. The results of the biomechanical analysis may indicate that certain techniques are more detrimental to the shoulder than others. This study will provide insight into the mechanisms of upper limb pain and injury as well as preventative techniques to minimize pain and injury in the wheelchair user’s shoulder.

This study is part of the University of Pittsburgh Center for Injury Research Control