Modeling Spinal Mobility in Ankylosing Spondylitis: Towards New Telekinetic Biomarkers

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a chronic inflammatory rheumatic disease that mainly affects the spine and pelvis in its axial form. It is responsible for chronic inflammatory pain and sometimes ankylosis with significant functional retention. Clinicians need markers capable of precisely measuring the restriction of range of motion in these patients, reflections of the activity and/or sequelae of the disease. The Inverstigators validated movement markers in the AS by a device including inertial sensors (XSENS) and computer modeling. The accuracy and repeatability of the XSENS-Awinda system compared to the reference measurement system have been demonstrated. The XSENS-Awinda device offers new real-time evaluation possibilities for quantitative gait analysis. This opens the way to new diagnostic tools, prognostics and therapeutic perspectives for the clinician.