ABSTRACT

Millions of adults worldwide live with hand osteoarthritis (HOA), and great increases in arthritis-attributable activity limitations (AAAL) are expected in the upcoming decades. Advances in anti-inflammatory and analgesic medications give persons with HOA the opportunity to be more active and the capacity to reduce AAALs by remaining active. OA-appropriate ergonomic design of products and interactive environments can promote activity thereby creating a positive step to address AAALs. This chapter outlines the basic framework of 3D physical interaction modeling and analysis (PIMA) of hand-intensive activities, and centers on issues of data consistency for 3D anatomical landmarks used to dimension HOA for ergonomic applications. 3D measurements for the active OA hand require new considerations for anatomical landmark data collection quality, such as joint inflammation, tenderness and pain, and visual and haptic issues that influence 3D landmark detection and registration. New ways to capture HOA interactive hand strategies for analysis of grasping, pinching, and other hand movement strategies can shape new ergonomic designs. Capturing diversity in PIMA for the active OA hand represents initial steps to establish an evidence-base supporting the development of additional ergonomic design considerations, intervention strategies, diverse digital human models, and new ways to analyze interactive movement for this large and growing population.