A combined numerical and experimental technique for estimation of the forces and moments in the lumbar intervertebral disc |
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| Authors: | Shaobai Wang Won Man Park Hemanth R Gadikota Jun Miao Yoon Hyuk Kim Kirkham B Wood |
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| Institution: | 1. Bioengineering Laboratory, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, 55 Fruit St., GRJ 1215, Boston, MA02114, USA;2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA;3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Kyung Hee University, Suwon, Korea;4. Tianjin Hospital, Tianjin, P.R. China;5. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Kyung Hee University, Suwon, Korea |
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| Abstract: | Evaluation of the loads on lumbar intervertebral discs (IVD) is critically important since it is closely related to spine biomechanics, pathology and prosthesis design. Non-invasive estimation of the loads in the discs remains a challenge. In this study, we proposed a new technique to estimate in vivo loads in the IVD using a subject-specific finite element (FE) model of the disc and the kinematics of the disc endplates as input boundary conditions. The technique was validated by comparing the forces and moments in the discs calculated from the FE analyses to the in vitro experiment measurements of three corresponding lumbar discs. The results showed that the forces and moments could be estimated within an average error of 20%. Therefore, this technique can be a promising tool for non-invasive estimation of the loads in the discs and may be extended to be used on living subjects. |
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| Keywords: | lumbar spine intervertebral disc finite element analysis imaging techniques robotic experiment joint force |
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