Chalmers Eric, Lou Edmond, Hill Doug, Zhao H Vicky
Electrical & Computer Engineering Department, University of Alberta, 9107-116 St, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2V4, Canada.
Electrical & Computer Engineering Department, University of Alberta, 9107-116 St, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2V4, Canada; Department of Surgery, University of Alberta, 2D Walter Mackenzie Health Sciences Centre, 8440-112 St, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2B7, Canada.
Med Eng Phys. 2015 Feb;37(2):203-9. doi: 10.1016/j.medengphy.2014.12.010. Epub 2015 Jan 22.
Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis is a spinal deformity affecting 2-3% of adolescents. Brace treatment, the most common non-surgical treatment, uses a hard plastic orthotic shell to prevent progression of the deformity. Previous studies have found association between treatment outcome and patients' compliance with the prescribed brace-wear regimen. However, the exact relationship between compliance and treatment outcome has yet to be elucidated. Current compliance monitoring techniques may not be providing enough information about patients' brace-wear habits. Building on previous work, we present a new compliance monitor which records both temperature and force applied to the patient's body. The combination of temperature and force readings shows both how often and how tightly the brace is worn. The new monitor is designed for minimal size and power consumption, measuring 5.2 cm × 2.5 cm × 0.8 cm, with a battery life of approximately one year. Seven patients wore the monitor in this pilot study. The temperature-based compliance estimate differed significantly from the force-based estimate in four out of seven cases. This suggests that some patients may wear their braces very loosely, and that existing temperature-only or force-only compliance monitors may not be giving a complete picture of brace-wear habits.
青少年特发性脊柱侧弯是一种影响2%至3%青少年的脊柱畸形。支具治疗是最常见的非手术治疗方法，使用硬塑料矫正外壳来防止畸形进展。先前的研究发现治疗效果与患者对规定支具佩戴方案的依从性之间存在关联。然而，依从性与治疗效果的确切关系尚未阐明。目前的依从性监测技术可能无法提供足够的患者支具佩戴习惯信息。基于先前的工作，我们展示了一种新的依从性监测器，它可以记录施加在患者身体上的温度和压力。温度和压力读数的结合既显示了支具的佩戴频率，也显示了佩戴的紧度。这种新的监测器设计得尺寸最小、功耗最低，尺寸为5.2厘米×2.5厘米×0.8厘米，电池续航时间约为一年。在这项初步研究中有7名患者佩戴了该监测器。在7个案例中的4个案例中，基于温度的依从性估计与基于压力的估计有显著差异。这表明一些患者可能佩戴支具非常宽松，而且现有的仅基于温度或仅基于压力的依从性监测器可能无法全面反映支具佩戴习惯。
