by Denise L. Perron, BS, DC
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Dr. Denise Perron presently is Vice President of healthcare Division at Biotonix , a technology company in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She has a Bachelors Degree in Biology and she received her DC degree from Palmer College. Before deciding to help advance Biotonix’s entry into healthcare markets, she had a high volume chiropractic practice in Montreal.
It is standard practice in Chiropractic that Doctors perform a postural analysis in the initial exam. Typically, the Doctors do this by eye ball or by some simple plumb line analysis and then simply note their findings. A few DCs use a simple computer plumb line system that cannot determine rotations and translations of the head, rib cage, or pelvis.
PosturePrint™ is an Internet computer analysis system offered by Biotonix, a Montreal, Quebec, Canada Company, that uses three digital images to detect postural deviations. There are a few Posture Analysis programs available for clinical use in Chiropractic practice, but none have published research, except one system: the PosturePrint™.1,2 The PosturePrint™ system also automatically identifies the postural deviations and links them to a nine-week corrective exercise program.
PosturePrint™ measures postural deviations as rotations and translations of the head, rib cage, and pelvis. It can find axial rotations (termed Ry in the Panjabi et al.3 1974 coordinate system) without a vertical digital photograph. While most university systems, that measure posture as rotations and translation, have between 4-6 cameras and a vertical camera for axial rotations, the PosturePrint™ does not require a vertical camera. The PosturePrint uses a left lateral, an AP, and right lateral digital photographs.
Axial rotations (Ry) are calculated, within an accuracy of 1.5 degrees, using some simple ingenious methods developed by two PhD mathematicians. For the head, a projection of a triangular marker system, is used to determine angles of rotation (Figure 1).
Figure 1
For the rib cage and pelvis, projection of the distance between two markers on a fixed plastic strip at the inferior scapulae or on the posterior buttocks is used to calculate rotations in degrees (Figures 2 and 3).
Figures 2 and 3
The need, for non-invasive, scientifically based, and proven tools, is essential to the practice of chiropractic. As a profession, we need to remain on the leading edge of technology by using such tools to better the care of our patients: high touch and high tech. PosturePrint™ meets this need for postural analysis and provides for measurements of improvement pre- and post-care.
By using the PosturePrint™, Chiropractors are not only offering their patients the latest and most scientific way to detect and identify postural deviation and to have a scientific based exercise programs to correct it, but they are participating and contributing to research. The data base we are amassing is the largest data base in the world today on postural parameters, deviation detection, and charting pain and disability indices. Chiropractors, should they choose to, can participate in this research as they use the PosturePrint™ from their offices at no additional cost. By using such a tool, you can serve patients and help our profession with research.
Should using the PosturePrint™ in your office and participating in research be an interest to you, contact me at our Biotonix Montreal Office at perrond@biotonix.com.
References
1) Harrison DE, Janik TJ, Cailliet R, Harrison DD, Normand MC, Black P, Perron DL. Validation of an algorithm to estimate 3-D rotations and translations of the rib cage in upright posture from three 2-D digital images. 8th Biennial Congress of the World Federation of Chiropractic, International Conference on Chiropractic Research, Sydney, Australia, June 16-18, 2005:328-9.
2) Harrison DE, Janik TJ, Cailliet R, Harrison DD, Normand MC, Black P, Perron DL. Validation of an algorithm to estimate 3-D rotations and translations of the head in upright posture from three 2-D images. 8th Biennial Congress of the World Federation of Chiropractic, International Conference on Chiropractic Research, Sydney, Australia, June 16-18, 2005:332-3.
3) Panjabi MM, White AA, Brand RA. A note on defining body parts configurations. J Biomech 1974; 7(4): 385-87.
