Abstract Summary
The purpose of this study was to quantify the effects of using geared wheels on hand-rim kinetics and glenohumeral joint kinetics during wheelchair ramp ascent in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). Seven veterans with SCI propelled their manual wheelchairs equipped with geared wheels up a ramp in standard and low gear conditions. A custom instrumented geared wheel measured hand-rim kinetics and tri-axial glenohumeral joint dynamics were calculated. The peak hand-rim resultant force and propulsive moment, as well as the peak glenohumeral flexion moment, were significantly less during the low gear condition than the standard gear condition. The current investigation suggests that using geared wheels may be beneficial for upper extremity joint load reduction during demanding tasks such as ramp ascent.
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