Fields of application and examples

Since Leonardo Mechanography is based on functional everyday movements it can be applied to a wide age and performance ability range. From children to the elderly, from obese to elite athletes - i. e. a new dimension in objective and comparable analysis of muscular function.

Typical fields of application

Typical fields of application are:

• Analysis of anaerobic peak power output
• Maximum voluntary force (ideal for combination with pQCT results)
• Objective quantification of muscle function
• Analysis of asymmetries (e.g. for return to play decissions)
• Assessment of muscle function for Sarkopenia and Dynapenia
• Motion analysis, power assessment and progress control
• Identification of movement asymmetries
• Documentation of the success of therapy or training
• Easy to use, fast application, high reproducibility of results

Examples of application

Geriatrics

International studies have shown that muscle power is an essential parameter to determine fall risk and fracture risk. In the geriatric field the chair rising test has been established, which can be analysed in great detail when performed on the Leonardo ­Mechanograph. Instead of simply measuring the time per iteration, the Leonardo ­mechanography software can also analyse peak forces, peak power and left-right ­differences for each repetition of the test. Since the chair rising test lacks significance for fit individuals the Leonardo ­mechanography software also offers jumping tests. The counter movement jump for maximum height generates the highest peak power output of all functional movements and therefore is ideal to characterise muscular performance. Comprehensive reference data makes this individual performance and the efficiency of the movement comparable between individuals.
Another established parameter is the maximum grip force (IMGF). In combination with the Leonardo  GF option this well established parameter can be assessed easily. The Leonardo Mechanography software includes reference data for an age range from 3 to 99 years.

Paediatrics

Muscular performance is an essential component of mobility and autonomy for everyday life. Especially in the field of chronic diseases Leonardo mechanography is especially ideal to quantify the physical status and to document each individual's therapy success.

Orthopaedics & physiotherapy

In the fields of orthopaedics and physiotherapy it becomes increasingly important to evaluate and to document the success of therapy. Apart from the objective quantification of physiologic movement patterns the Leonardo Mechanograph also allows the quantification of left-right differences of the locomotion apparatus. This offers an essential advantage because a more symmetric motion pattern is typically an obvious measure for physiotherapy success.

Clinical studies 

Leonardo Mechanography is the ideal tool to quantify muscle function based on functional movements. The software includes reference data from age 3 to 99 to make results of most different studies comparable in terms of muscular function. Many international studies already use this approach for objective and reproducible analysis of intervention results and to allow easy comparison to other studies. Leonardo Mechanograph's detailed analysis allows to pin-point the physical aspect of movement the selected intervention is focused on. An additional benefit offers the combination of Leonardo mechanography and pQCT (peripheral quantitative computer tomography) in order to assess the functional muscle-bone unit (Mechanostat). The research version of the software includes an additional statistics module allowing the easy application of statistical analysis on sub groups and easy export of the resulting data.

Fitness & Pro Sports

The fast and easy to apply measurement method of Leonardo Mechanography allows the efficient use of muscular performance assessment without time consuming subject preparation. A single test can be performed in 1 minute, a standard assessment in 5 minutes. In addition asymmetries of motion can be detected and quantified which helps for return to play decissions. Also motion patterns can be optimised according to the measured force curves. The Leonardo Mechanograph is an ideal tool for efficient training control and the documentation of training success.