Feasibility Testing of Wearable Device for Musculoskeletal Monitoring during Aquatic Therapy and Rehabilitation

The objectives of this study were to test the feasibility of the developed waterproof wearable device with a Surface Electromyography (sEMG) sensor and Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) sensor by (1) comparing the onset duration of sEMG recordings from maximal voluntary contractions (MVC), (2) comparing the acceleration of arm movement from IMU, and (3) observing the reproducibility of onset duration and acceleration from the developed device for bicep brachii (BB) muscle between on dry-land, and in aquatic environments. Five healthy males participated in two experimental protocols with the activity of BB muscle of the left and right arms. Using the sEMG of BB muscle, the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) and typical error (CV%) were calculated to determine the reproducibility and precision of onset duration and acceleration, respectively. In case of onset duration, no significant differences were observed between land and aquatic condition (p = 0.9–0.98), and high reliability (ICC = 0.93–0.98) and precision (CV% = 2.7–6.4%) were observed. In addition, acceleration data shows no significant differences between land and aquatic condition (p = 0.89–0.93), and high reliability (ICC = 0.9–0.97) and precision (CV% = 7.9–9.2%). These comparable sEMG and acceleration values in both dry-land and aquatic environment supports the suitability of the proposed wearable device for musculoskeletal monitoring during aquatic therapy and rehabilitation as the integrity of the sEMG and acceleration recordings maintained during aquatic activities.Clinical Relevance—This study and relevant experiment demonstrate the feasibility of the developed wearable device to support clinicians and therapists for musculoskeletal monitoring during aquatic therapy and rehabilitation.