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. 2023 Jul 27;18(7):e0289115.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0289115. eCollection 2023.

Hip and trunk kinematics during reaching on a mobile and stable seat

Michelle C Haas  1 , Bettina B Sommer  1 , Samuel Karrer  1 , Matthias Jörger  1 , Eveline S Graf  1 , Martin Huber  1 , Daniel Baumgartner  2 , Christoph M Bauer  1
Affiliations

Hip and trunk kinematics during reaching on a mobile and stable seat

Michelle C Haas et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Reaching movements are often used to assess selective trunk control in people with neurological conditions. Also, it is known that reaching performance after stroke is increased through training on a mobile seat compared to conventional physical therapy. However, the effect of a mobile seat on joint kinematics has not yet been investigated. This study aimed to quantify differences in the range of motion of the hip and trunk during reaching exercises on a mobile and stable sitting surface. Fifteen healthy participants performed reaching beyond arm's length on a mobile and a stable seat in four different directions: ipsilateral, anterior, contralateral, and contralateral diagonal. Biomechanical data were collected, including kinematics of the hip and trunk, and surface electromyography of the trunk muscles. The mobile sitting surface led to a higher range of motion in the trunk and the hip in the frontal and sagittal plane, but not in the rotational plane. Differences between reaching directions were found in all joint directions, except that of trunk flexion. Hence, movement patterns of the hip and trunk differ during reaching on different sitting surfaces and in different directions. A larger range of motion in the frontal or sagittal plane while training on the mobile seat provides added neuromuscular stimuli to the trunk muscles (= a higher demand on trunk muscles), which could result in more efficient training and therefore, increased trunk control after stroke. However, this has to be investigated in a future study with people after stroke.

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Conflict of interest statement

Daniel Baumgartner is the owner of rotavis AG (Winterthur, Switzerland), the company that implements the mobile seat system. This does not alter our adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials. All other authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Starting position.
Participant sitting in the starting position on the stable seat.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Reaching tasks.
Ipsilateral reaching (left) and contralateral reaching (right).
Fig 3
Fig 3. Reaching tasks.
Anterior reaching (left) and contralateral diagonal reaching (right).
Fig 4
Fig 4. Hip flexion.
The predicted range of motion for hip flexion.
Fig 5
Fig 5. Trunk rotation.
The predicted range of motion for trunk rotation.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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