Adaptation of a MR imaging protocol into a real-time clinical biometric ultrasound protocol for persons with spinal cord injury at risk for deep tissue injury: A reliability study

Abstract

Background: High strain in soft tissues that overly bony prominences are considered a risk factor for pressure ulcers (PUs) following spinal cord impairment (SCI) and have been computed using Finite Element methods (FEM). The aim of this study was to translate a MRI protocol into ultrasound (US) and determine between-operator reliability of expert sonographers measuring diameter of the inferior curvature of the ischial tuberosity (IT) and the thickness of the overlying soft tissue layers on able-bodied (AB) and SCI using real-time ultrasound. Material and methods: Part 1: Fourteen AB participants with a mean age of 36.7 ± 12.09 years with 7 males and 7 females had their 3 soft tissue layers ..