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Clinical Evaluation of a Markerless Motion Capture Technology: Reliability and Usability for Musculoskeletal Assessment
Full text linkBACKGROUND While various technologies have recently emerged as prominent tools in healthcare, particularly for augmenting screening and diagnostic processes, evaluations of their accuracy and reliability within clinical musculoskeletal (MSK) settings remain limited.
METHODS This was a cross-sectional clinical evaluation and usability study of a markerless motion capture system (MMCS) compared with the standard of care using a manual goniometer in a healthy adult population. Ten range of motion (ROM) measurements (degrees) were taken on the same participant using both methods. Active, passive, and 3-repeat active joint ROM measurements were taken for the right and left sides. Mean paired differences between left and right pairs of MMCS and standard of care measurements were calculated and statistically compared using a paired t-test. Quintiles for each pair of ROM measurements were determined. Agreement of pair of ROM measurements was assessed using the cross-tabulations of the quintiles. Cohen’s kappa statistic, a measure of inter-rater reliability (comparing categories of manual goniometer vs. MMCS) was calculated. Intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to assess the reliability of each joint pair of ROMs. Mean absolute differences in ROM between joint pairs were calculated. A two-sided p-value
RESULTS For active, passive, and 3-repeat active range of motion (ROM) showed fair agreement between manual goniometer and MMC measurements for active ROM, with kappa statistics ranging from 0.32 to 0.37. The ICCs varied across joints, ranging from .121 (active ROM left thoracolumbar rotation) to .960 (3-Repeat active ROM left shoulder internal rotation). Paired t-test of ROMs revealed statistically significant differences between the two methods for all joints except for active knee extension. About 40% of the mean absolute differences between ROM pairs were within ±5 degrees.
CONCLUSION Mean differences between pairs of ROM measurements for manual goniometer vs. MMCS varied widely. Inter-rater reliability showed poor to excellent agreement. Reliability assessed using the ICC ranged from weak to strong. Future studies evaluating MMCS for screening purposes rather than diagnostic-level accuracy are needed. The reliability of the MMCS algorithm needs improvement before the technology can be scaled up
Addressing Diabetic Retinopathy Prevalence in Low-Income Communities: Barriers to Quality Healthcare and Strategies for Equitable Treatment Access
Full text linkStudies have shown a strong correlation between diabetes and individuals in low-income communities, which often lack access to equitable healthcare for a variety of reasons. This honors thesis will focus on diabetic retinopathy, its prevalence, prevention, and treatment strategies in both low- and high-income communities. A comprehensive literature review was conducted to define diabetic retinopathy, assess its prevalence, and review past and present approaches to its treatment and prevention. This paper aims to identify strategies to improve healthcare accessibility in low-income communities by analyzing current strategies in place to prevent and treat diabetic retinopathy and proposing potential solutions that will make them more accessible to everyone
Maternal Food Insecurity and Adverse Birth Outcomes
Full text linkBackground: Despite being a high-income country, the United States faces persistent food insecurity (FI), disproportionately affecting women of reproductive age. This study investigates the association between prenatal FI and adverse birth outcomes, specifically birth weight (BW) and gestational age (GA), among a diverse cohort of pregnant individuals in South Dakota.
Methods: A longitudinal analysis was conducted using data from 1,478 mother-infant pairs enrolled in the Safe Passage Cohort of the ECHO study. Prenatal FI was assessed using a modified USDA Household Food Security Questionnaire. Birth outcomes were analyzed using both univariate and multivariate regression models, adjusting for maternal sociodemographic and health variables.
Results: Unadjusted analyses revealed statistically significant associations between FI and lower BW and earlier GA. Infants born to food-insecure mothers weighed on average 85 grams less and were more likely to be born preterm. However, after adjusting for covariates, these associations were no longer statistically significant. Higher pre-pregnancy BMI, gravidity, and parity remained significantly associated with adverse birth outcomes.
Conclusion: While prenatal FI showed marginal associations with adverse birth outcomes after adjustment, the findings underscore the importance of addressing FI as a social determinant of health. The study highlights the need for targeted interventions, particularly among American Indian/Alaska Native populations, and calls for further research into the complex interplay between FI, maternal health, and infant outcomes.https://red.library.usd.edu/spp/1008/thumbnail.jp
Improving Interactions During Medical Interpretation: Educational Module for Medical Students
Full text linkAs the population of individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP) continues to grow in South Dakota and across the United States, healthcare systems face increasing challenges in providing equitable care. This study evaluates the implementation of an educational module designed to prepare first-year medical students at the University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine (SSOM) to work effectively with medical interpreters and patients with LEP. The module included a didactic session, role-play, open discussion, and pre- and post-surveys assessing students’ knowledge, attitudes, preparedness, and perceptions of the educational environment. Results from 68 participants demonstrated statistically significant improvements across all measured domains. Students reported increased confidence and understanding of interpreter roles, and feedback highlighted the value of incorporating virtual interpretation methods. The findings support the integration of formal interpretation training into medical curricula to enhance future physicians’ ability to deliver culturally and linguistically appropriate care.https://red.library.usd.edu/spp/1011/thumbnail.jp
Upward Distortion and Organizational Culture
Full text linkThe “MUM effect, a social phenomenon in which people prefer to avoid sharing bad news, can cause “upward distortion,” as employees give incomplete information to their supervisors to avoid reprisal. Organizations require upward communication to transmit critical information, and disruptions to this process have implications for both workplace efficiency and job satisfaction. Strauss (2011) developed the Upward Communication Distortion Index (UCDI) to measure the propensity of individuals to distort upward organizational communication. The UCDI was compared with the subscales for LMX (leader-member exchange) and Locus of Control. This project analyzed upward distortion in American businesses, specifically how four different organizational cultures contribute to the upward distortion through the hierarchical MUM effect. Survey respondents (n=351) were recruited through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, a crowdsourcing marketplace and completed an online survey. Correlation analysis was conducted to determine if employees in organizations with high scores for the four different types of organizations (clan, hierarchical, adhocracy, market) on the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument would (1) have a lower propensity to distort upward communication as indicated on the UCDI instrument, (2) exhibit high scores of leader-member communication (LMX), and (3) exhibit strong locus of control scores
MARKERLESS MOTION CAPTURE HARDWARE FOR INTEGRATION INTO COMPACT SPACES FOR CLINICAL MOVEMENT ASSESSMENTS
No full textQuantifying human movement through biomechanical assessments provides metrics for evaluating rehabilitation progress and assessing the functional movements of patients in healthcare settings. Traditional tools used for this assessment, including motion capture and wearable sensors, provide accurate results, but have significant barriers that limit their use. The largest barriers to adopting motion capture tools are cost, space requirements, and time it takes to perform these assessments. Recent advances in markerless motion capture (MMC) methods have aimed to reduce one or two of these barriers but have yet to address all three simultaneously. OpenCap is a low-cost MMC tool that uses iPads and provides biomechanical analysis using cloud computing to offer researchers a tool that reduces the time and cost of performing a motion study. Despite advances like OpenCap, there is yet to be a clinical movement assessment tool that can fit into the small spaces present in existing healthcare settings. This work presents CloseCap, a novel MMC tool that uses low-cost cameras and edge computing to perform motion capture in spaces as small as 4 square meters. CloseCap uses state-of-the-art human pose estimation algorithms paired with triangulation methods optimized for wide-angle cameras. The performance of the CloseCap system was assessed against OpenCap to measure its accuracy in performing a biomechanical movement assessment. The comparison between methods was made using simultaneously recorded sessions of a person walking on a treadmill at a steady pace. Thirty walking trials were collected for two different participants. Kinematics for both methods were computed using the OpenSim inverse kinematic pipeline, and root-mean-squared-error for three lower-limb joint angles was calculated and compared. Statistical parametric mapping was also used on normalized gait cycle data to compare the difference in each method’s ability to perform a gait assessment. The study revealed a difference in the joint angles of six to eight degrees depending on the joint measured. These differences are higher than the commonly expected difference of five degrees when comparing kinematic data from different sources. Despite the higher-than-expected difference, CloseCap demonstrated that clinical movement assessments can be performed in spaces much smaller than previously possible
HOW NAME, IMAGE, AND LIKENESS HAS AFFECTED NCAA LEGISLATION
Full text linkThis paper analyzes the impact that name, image, and likeness (NIL) has affected the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) legislation. To answer this question, I reviewed the NCAA’s website on their legislative body and rules that related to financial compensation. I also analyzed court cases about NIL that were brought against the NCAA. What I found was that NIL has been a short and recent change to the NCAA’s operations, but it has been an impactful one nonetheless. Over recent years, the legislation for NCAA has changed in order to accommodate athletes’ name, image, and likeness. A distinct outlook from both the court and the athletic community is the determination of college athletics as its own market. The main arguments in favor of the restraint on student-athlete name, image, and likeness (NIL) compensation are that it protects the amateurism component of college athletics, which is a key draw-in for college sports, and that the primary role of college student-athletes is an educational one. What is found in the reality of these cases is that the amateurism standard can still be protected with less restrictive rules. It was also found that NIL has become part of a bigger picture where college athletes are demanding compensation rights for the services they provide in the college athletics market. This has caused the NCAA to change its legislation on NIL rules and provide student-athletes with the rights they have been demanding for years
