Behforootan Sara, Chatzistergos Panagiotis E, Chockalingam Nachiappan, Naemi Roozbeh
School of Life Sciences and Education, Staffordshire University, Leek Road, Stoke-on-Trent, ST4 2DF, UK.
Ann Biomed Eng. 2017 Dec;45(12):2750-2761. doi: 10.1007/s10439-017-1918-1. Epub 2017 Sep 25.
Internal strain is known to be one of the contributors to plantar soft tissue damage. However, due to challenges related to measurement techniques, there is a paucity of research investigating the strain within the plantar soft tissue during daily weight-bearing activities. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to develop a non-invasive method for predicting heel pad strain during loading. An ultrasound indentation technique along with a mathematical model was employed to calculate visco-hyperelastic structural coefficients from the results of cyclic-dynamic indentation and stress-relaxation tests. Subject-specific structural coefficients of heel pads were calculated from twenty participants along with the assessment of plantar pressure. The average difference between the predicted and the measured force during the cyclic-dynamic indentation test was only 5.8%. Moreover, the average difference between the predicted and the in vivo strain during walking was 14%. No statistically significant correlation was observed between maximum strain and peak plantar pressure during walking; indicating that the measurement of strain along with plantar pressure can improve our understanding of the mechanical behaviour of the plantar soft tissue.
已知内部应变是足底软组织损伤的促成因素之一。然而,由于测量技术方面的挑战,关于日常负重活动期间足底软组织内应变的研究很少。因此,本研究的主要目的是开发一种非侵入性方法来预测负重期间的足跟垫应变。采用超声压痕技术和数学模型,根据循环动态压痕和应力松弛试验的结果计算粘弹性超弹性结构系数。根据20名参与者的足底压力评估结果,计算出了个体特异性的足跟垫结构系数。循环动态压痕试验期间预测力与测量力之间的平均差异仅为5.8%。此外,步行期间预测应变与体内应变之间的平均差异为14%。步行期间最大应变与足底峰值压力之间未观察到统计学上的显著相关性;这表明应变与足底压力的测量可以增进我们对足底软组织力学行为的理解。