Posture correction girdle with intelligent padding system to dynamically adjust the pressure distribution and correct the scoliotic spine

Abstract

The progress of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) affects the patient’s living quality by increasing the posture imbalance. In early scoliosis, postural correction may be provided to halt the progression of the deformity. Thus, bracing treatment will be introduced to the patients. Compared with the traditional hard brace, the soft brace is preferred due to its intrinsic compliance and light weight. However, in the soft brace, the ideal correction constraints and the contact pressure among the body points are hard to be identified. Therefore, in this study, a new pneumatic padding system is introduced to the posture correction girdle which could dynamically adjust the paddings’ contact pressure. With this calibration design, the therapist could immediately see the effects of the posture correction girdle on patients with different pneumatic pressure from a sitting balance sensing system. Hence, this padding system could provide precise adjustments in order to optimize the pressure level and corrective effect. We have conducted a wear trial with 3 mild scoliosis young subjects with cobb angle between 10-20 degrees. They were invited to undergo a 2-hour trial of the girdle with the optimized pressure parameter. The immediate effects of the posture correction girdle with intelligent pads were evaluated by comparing pre-wearing and post-trial X-ray and 3D scan images. The changes of Cobb and postural angles show that the girdle could reduce the scoliosis curvature and postural imbalance of the subjects. This study demonstrates that an intelligent and sophisticated padding system could be a new alterative intervention to provide optimized pressure with ergonomic designed garments that provide a better healthcare support for patients.