Anthropometric and Biomechanical Characteristics of Body Segments in Persons with Spinal Cord Injury

This study investigates how spinal cord injury (SCI) affects the distribution of body mass and composition, considering the time since injury and obesity. It is important to accurately represent the anthropometrics of SCI population in biomechanical studies. The study found that people with chronic SCI tend to have a greater proportion of their mass in the trunk and upper limbs, and less in the lower limbs, compared to those with acute SCI. Obesity further exacerbates this shift in mass distribution. These findings highlight the need for population-specific anthropometric data in biomechanical models used for rehabilitation and therapeutic interventions for individuals with SCI.

• 1
  Chronic SCI is associated with a shift in mass proportion from lower limbs to the trunk and upper arms, and decreased lean mass proportion, especially in the trunk.
• 2
  Obesity strongly affects the anthropometric characteristics of all males with SCI and is associated with a higher proportion of the body mass located in the trunk and away from the distal limbs.
• 3
  People who used wheelchairs had significantly greater normalized shank mass by 4.7 %BW (p = 0.002) and greater trunk lean mass ratio by 7.2 % (p = 0.036) than those who did not use a wheelchair.