Biomechanical Analysis of Hippotherapy using 3-D Video Motion Capture

Authors: Grace Cassidy, Jack Lipold, Chandler Sizer, Dr. John DesJardins

Figure 1. Skeletal Model of Horse and Rider

Introduction

Patients that suffer a stroke have the greatest opportunity for rehabilitation within a month of the incident. Aerobic exercise has been proven to help these patients improve their walking gait and mental rehabilitation. The scope of this research is to use equine assisted therapy in the rehabilitation process of post-stroke patients. This was accomplished by tracking the horse and rider movement with 3D motion capture, as well as monitoring patients progress over time.

Materials and Methods

Figure 2. Rider Marker Placement

Figure 3. Horse Marker Placement

Figure 4. Camera set-up for motion capture

Figure 5. Qualisys camera

Qualisys
- 3-D video motion capture system (Sweden)
- 8 camera setup (Figure 4)
- Reflective biomarkers placed on anatomical landmarks on both horse and rider (Figures 2&3)
Visual3D
- Biomechanical analysis tool
- Data imported from Qualisys, skeletal model placed onto subject (Figure 1)
- Data metrics calculated and exported as reports
Data collection
- At Clemson University Equine Center
- 1 rider and 2 horses (Female, American quarter horse; Male, American quarter horse)
- 5 trials recorded: 1 static, 3 walking, 1 trot

Results

Figure 6. Range of Motion of Rider Torso Movement (Front-to-Back)

Figure 7. Range of Motion of Rider Torso Movement (Side-To-Side)

Graph 1. Range of Motion of Torso Movement (Front-to-Back)

Graph 2. Range of Motion of Rider Torso Movement (Side-to-Side)

Rider Torso Movement:

Data values:

front back data side data

Table 1. Rider Torso Movement (Front-to-Back) Table 2. Rider Torso Movement (Side-to-Side)

Gait Cycle Charts – Joint Angles:

Mal_GaitCycleChart

Conde_GaitCycleChart

Conclusions

The analysis of horse and rider biomechanics will provide valuable insight on how to optimize patient rehabilitation through hippotherapy. The pilot data collected provides a sound protocol for data collection of horse-rider movements and muscle activation. As this research progresses into the fall, EMG and 3-D motion capture will be utilized with a larger population (n=10) to analyze the similarities in muscle activation and joint displacement between gait and horseback riding in healthy subjects. This data will be used to gain a further understanding on the use and benefits of hippotherapy in rehabilitation, specifically in the gait correction phase.