The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of karate fights on Achilles tendon stiffness in karate competitors. Eleven male karate fighters participated in the present study. A handheld MyotonPRO device (MyotonPRO, Myoton Ltd, Estonia) was applied to measure Achilles tendon stiffness in karate fighters. The Achilles tendon was tested 5 cm above the tuber calcanei. Stiffness measureme...

This paper presents a flexible, vision-based test setup to perform 3D measurements of thin, sheet-like structures and indentation trials to obtain geometric properties and stiffness maps of biological soft tissues. The system is utilized for in vitro testing of cartilage-bone plugs to acquire a “gold standard” which will be used to validate MRI measurements of cartilage properties.

seismic piezocone device (scptu) together with resonant column and cyclic triaxial test apparatus are employed to measure small strain shear modulus (g0) of carbonate sandy and clayey soils of southern coasts of iran. a large area of southern regions of iran is formed from clay, silt and sand. in this study, maximum shear modulus that is derived from both field (by seismic piezocone) and labora...

BACKGROUND First metatarsophalangeal joint (MTPJ) mobility is commonly assessed by its angular displacement (joint angle) or subjectively rated as 'hypermobile', 'normal' or 'stiff' by a clinician. Neither of these methods is ideal because displacement alone does not take into account the force required to displace the joint and subjective evaluation is not always reliable. This study presented...

OBJECTIVES To noninvasively measure changes in corneal biomechanical properties induced by ultraviolet-activated riboflavin cross-linking therapy using acoustic radiation force (ARF). METHODS Cross-linking was performed on the right eyes of 6 rabbits, with the left eyes serving as controls. Acoustic radiation force was used to assess corneal stiffness before treatment and weekly for 4 weeks a...

As humans age, degenerative changes in the arterial structure gradually progress and result in the stiffening of the arteries, which is called arteriosclerosis. Arterial stiffness is now an established risk factor of cardiovascular disease (CVD). This stiffening has adverse effects for both the general population as well as for patients with CVD. Measurements of pulse wave velocity and pulse wa...

The contractile units of striated muscle, the sarcomeres, comprise the thick (myosin) and thin (actin) filaments mediating active contraction and the titin filaments determining "passive" elasticity. We hypothesized that titin may be more active in muscle contraction by directly modulating thick-filament properties. We used single-myofibril mechanical measurements and atomic force microscopy of...

Measurements of the frequency response of head impact points on the exterior and the interior of a car were used to characterize the dynamic behavior of the object that was struck. These points were then arranged in a hierarchy of increasing stiffness. Thirty-two cases in which the distribution of injury to the brain had been recorded were grouped according to the stiffness of the object struck...

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has become a powerful tool for measuring material properties in biology and imposing mechanical boundary conditions on samples from single molecules to cells and tissues. Constant force or constant height can be maintained in an AFM experiment through feedback control of cantilever deflection, known respectively as a 'force clamp' or 'position clamp'. However, stif...

Skeletal muscle is a very dynamic tissue, thus accurate quantification of skeletal muscle stiffness throughout its functional range is crucial to improve the physical functioning and independence following pathology. Shear wave elastography (SWE) is an ultrasound-based technique that characterizes tissue mechanical properties based on the propagation of remotely induced shear waves. The objecti...