Adérito Seixas

Towards a detailed anthropometric body characterization using the Microsoft Kinect.

Anthropometry has been widely used in different fields, providing relevant information for medicine, ergonomics and biometric applications. However, the existent solutions present marked disadvantages, reducing the employment of this type of evaluation. Studies have been conducted in order to easily determine anthropometric measures considering data provided by low-cost sensors, such as the Microsoft Kinect. In this work, a methodology is proposed and implemented for estimating anthropometric measures considering the information acquired with this sensor. The measures obtained with this method were compared with the ones from a validation system, Qualisys. Comparing the relative errors determined with state-of-art references, for some of the estimated measures, lower errors were verified and a more complete characterization of the whole body structure was achieved.

The effect of different vibration frequencies in the skin temperature in healthy subjects

This study assessed the impact of acute exposure to whole-body vibration in skin temperature of the lower limbs in healthy subjects. Twelve healthy volunteers (mean age 24.55 years) were randomly assigned to two groups and were exposed to different whole-body vibration protocols (35 Hz and 40 Hz frequency and 5-6 mm amplitude). Skin temperature was measured before and immediately after exposure. Infrared thermography measurements revealed that skin temperature decreased significantly after exposure to vibration. The results were different for both vibration frequencies. Exposure to 35 Hz vibration produced significant decreases in skin temperature in some of the studied regions of interest and exposure to 40 Hz vibration produced significant decreases in skin temperature in all studied regions of interest.

Skin Temperature in Diabetic Foot Patients: A Study Focusing on the Angiosome Concept

The effect of peripheral artery disease in the skin temperature of diabetic foot patients is not known. In this study, skin temperature was assessed in patients with established diagnosis of diabetic foot, all with neuropathy, with or without peripheral artery disease. Thermograms of feet with neuropathy and peripheral vascular disease were compared with thermograms of feet with neuropathy, without peripheral artery disease. Skin temperature was lower in feet with neuropathy and peripheral artery disease and differences were statistically significant (p < 0.05) in most regions of interest.

Skin temperature of the foot: comparing transthyretin Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy and Diabetic Foot patients

Abstract Skin temperature regulation is dependent on the autonomic nervous system function, which may be impaired in patients with neuropathy. Literature reporting thermographic assessment of patients with established diagnosis of Diabetic Foot (DF) is scarce, but this information is completely absent in patients suffering from Transthyretin Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy (TTR-FAP). The aim of this study is to compare skin temperature distribution in patients with DF and TTR-FAP. Thermograms of the dorsal and plantar surfaces of twelve neuropathic patients, six with DF and six with TTR-FAP, were assessed and compared. Skin temperature was significantly higher in the diabetic foot group, in both regions of interest. Thermal symmetry values were high, but similar in both groups. The bias between the right and left foot was smaller, with smaller limits of agreement in TTR-FAP patients, suggesting a lower agreement between the temperature of the right and left feet in DF patients.

Infrared Thermography in Water Sports

Likewise any other sport, water sports can also be objectively assessed through a physiological method such as thermal imaging. This particular type of sports present an extra parameter, which is the particular environment were it happens. In this chapter it is outlined the underlining concepts, challenges and methods, along with the related published research to date in the field with practical examples and future lines of research are proposed.

Skin Temperature of the Foot: A Comparative Study Between Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy and Diabetic Foot Patients

Skin temperature regulation is dependant of the autonomic nervous system function, which may be impaired in patients with neuropathy. Studies reporting thermographic assessment of patients with established diagnosis of Diabetic Foot (DF) are scarce but this information is completely absent in patients suffering from Transthyretin Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy (TTR-FAP). The aim of this study is to compare skin temperature distribution in patients with DF and TTR-FAP. Thermograms of the dorsal and plantar surfaces were compared. Skin temperature was higher in the diabetic foot group and differences were statistically significant (p < 0.05) in both regions of interest.