Professor of Education in Biomechanics
Head of Orthopedic & Trauma
Surgery Department
Director of Institute of Motion Analysis & Research (IMAR)

Institute of Motion Analysis & Research (IMAR)
Orthopedic & Trauma Surgery,
University of Dundee
TORT Centre
Ninewells Hospital & Medical School
Dundee DD1 9SY
Scotland UK

Tel: 44 (0)1382 496276
Fax: 44 (0)1382 496200
email: r.j.abboud@dundee.ac.uk

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The University of Dundee’s Orthopedic and Trauma Surgery Department has been at the forefront of the use of motion capture, by clinicians and researchers, for more than 30 years.

The current Director of the Institute of Motion Analysis and Research (IMAR), Professor Rami Abboud, has worked in the field of motion analysis, in Dundee, since 1988 and has overseen a number of ground-breaking developments starting with the establishment of the Foot Pressure Analysis Clinic and Laboratory in 1993 and subsequently IMAR in 2003.

One of the most recent developments was the addition of the sports biomechanics lab in January 2007. This brings IMAR to five motion labs with facilities used for both clinical and research work. “This new lab was added to IMAR to compliment our other facilities and to focus specifically on sports-related biomechanics research and assessment, using the excellence from our clinical service to benefit the sports arena,” explains Professor Abboud. The lab is 32 metres long with twelve Vicon® MX13 cameras, eight Vicon® F40 cameras, two 100 Hz digital cameras, two AMTI force platforms and other pressure related systems (e.g. Emed-X platform). One of the force platforms is sited on rails such that the different stride lengths of various athletes during running or walking can be accommodated. The Vicon® F40 cameras are ideal for the work being done at the Institute as they are able to capture up to 370 Hz at 4 million pixels, significantly faster and more accurate than previous generations of Vicon® cameras. “We have recently invested in dedicated high-tech treadmills, rowing machines, exercise cycles and a golf simulator that will be synchronised with our existing equipment and the Vicon® systems”.

All of these elements have enabled Professor Abboud and his team to undertake studies based on a degree of detail beyond the reach of other facilities, as the professor himself explains: “We now have an extremely flexible Institute which we use for a wide variety of research studies and clinical work. The ability to use the smaller 3mm Vicon markers (rather than the traditional 25mm markers) have allowed us to evaluate aspects of movement such as the joints of the spine, hands and feet. We have several studies of this nature underway and more in the pipeline.” An example of the wide reaching aspects of the work of IMAR is from a large study of footwear. One such study was the evaluation of the support offered by running shoes. This study was originally started around six ears ago. The proposal was to take a sample of running shoes from three brands and three price categories – inexpensive, medium and expensive. It is quite likely that most people would assume that the more expensive the running shoe the better its design and structure, and also that they would offer the runner a superior level of comfort and support. Not so, says Professor Abboud. “We compared comfort, pressure attenuation and shock absorption within each of these categories of sports shoes, and the results showed that the inexpensive and medium shoes were as good as the most expensive, if not better in some instances. In other words, paying more for your sports shoes does not guarantee a better quality. The first phase of this study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, formed a small part of a bigger project which evaluated many aspects of running shoes, and in fact, we have now studied over 100 pairs of running shoes of different designs.” IMAR is engaged in a series of projects concerning footwear and biomechanics, which could ultimately help shoe manufacturers design better footwear.

“Proprioception is another element of biomechanics that we strongly believe needs to be examined,” says Professor Abboud. “We have been investigating it now for almost 10 years and it has been our firm belief, for some time, that footwear is the main cause of ankle injuries. Recent studies have confirmed this by showing a direct link. “Here is an example that most people should be able to relate to. Imagine yourself walking. If you are walking barefoot you will never twist or invert your feet/ankles. However, if you are wearing shoes or sandals, the possibility of twisting them would be higher.”

An area of research that is a particular focus for Professor Abboud is the issue of footwear support, proprioception and the diabetic foot. “When I was doing my own PhD, almost 18 years ago, I found that some diabetic patients suffered from muscle dysfunction. The Tibialis Anterior muscle, which decelerates the foot following heel strike, during normal walking, shows an abnormal firing pattern in diabetic patients and results in a forefoot slap as they walk. This increases the pressure under the forefoot; the contact time of the foot on the ground; the duration of that contact, and so forth. Together, these factors facilitate the development of ulcers of the foot, which may ultimately result in amputation” says Professor Abboud.

Another major element of the work at IMAR is the Clinical Gait Analysis Service, run by Mrs Sheila Gibbs, Senior Clinical Scientist. This service has grown over the past 17 years and has seen through the various developments of the Vicon® hardware and software and continues to contribute to current developments.

Looking ahead, Professor Abboud and his IMAR team are working to further their research into the diabetic foot, by quantifying and modelling both motion and pressure data. The aim is to provide clinicians with a clinical service whose aim is to facilitate more effective treatment regimes. There are also studies underway evaluating the same group of patients using Vicon technology to examine endothelial (circulatory) dysfunction during gait.

Dundee is committed to using motion capture for the benefit of patients and sports enthusiasts, now and well into the future, by taking the research carried out in the Institute into the clinical and sporting arenas.