AXYZ: Conception d'un instrument clinique permettant l'évaluation quantitative des caractéristiques posturales des utilisateurs de fauteuil roulant

The positioning intervention aims at giving the person in a wheelchair a posture where the symmetry and alignment of the body segments are optimal in order to prevent the physiological and musculoskeletal problems inherent to an inadequate seated posture. This intervention usually begins with a postural evaluation; at the present time, there is no measuring instrument that corresponds to the clinical reality of the positioning practitioners.

The present research project is issued from this problematic. It is divided in two sections: the first section consists in the conceptualization and fabrication of a measuring instrument that can gather data on the position and spatial orientation of the body segments of the person using a wheelchair.

The initial purpose of the second section is the technical performance evaluation of the AXYZ by comparing it to the performances of a renowned instrument (the Preseon from Applied Precision). Secondly, the clinical validation of the instrument conceived will be carried out by specialized positioning clinicians: this validation investigates the clinicians' level of satisfaction when using the instrument in its real clinical setting, the satisfaction being evaluated by means of a questionnaire developed for that purpose. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)