ClinicalTrials.gg
Not yet recruitingNCT06223737Updated Nov 29, 2024

Spine Deformity Patients With Optoelectronic Motion Capture

An interventional study of EOS x-ray and Motion capture in Spine Deformity, sponsored by Schulthess Klinik. Not yet recruiting at 1 site in Switzerland. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 75 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2024-11-29.

Sponsored by Schulthess Klinik · Not applicable, Interventional, and Screening

From the registry’s dates

  • Primary completion was expected by Apr 2026, 6 months ago, but the record still lists the study as not yet recruiting.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
30
Allocation
Non-randomized
Ages
18 Years to 75 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Aging-induced changes in the spine can lead to adult spinal deformity, causing a forward and/or lateral shift of the trunk. While mild cases may have compensatory mechanisms, severe deformities necessitate treatment. Surgery with instrumentation effectively corrects deformities, but complications are common. Precise pre-operative planning based on X-rays is essential. However, radiological imaging has limitations, including ionizing radiation exposure and static nature. Marker-based optoelectronic motion analysis systems offer potential benefits for dynamic spine assessment.

This study aims to test the feasibility of using motion analysis systems to characterize spinal alignment and balance in patients with adult spine deformity. The primary objective is to assess the practical implementation, measurement capability, and resources required for motion analysis. Secondary objectives include investigating errors in absolute spinal curvature assessment and developing compensation strategies.

The project will recruit 20 patients (non-operated and operated) seeking medical attention for adult spine deformities and 10 healthy controls. Participants will undergo biplanar imaging and motion analysis to capture static and dynamic spine alignment during common activities. The data will help build patient-specific musculoskeletal models, offering potential insights into improving surgical planning for adult spine deformities.

Read the detailed description

Aging and degeneration can lead to changes in the spine, causing adult spinal deformities like loss of lumbar lordosis, thoracic hyperkyphosis, and scoliosis. Severe deformities can be highly debilitating, necessitating treatments. Surgery using instrumentation, such as pedicle screws, rods, and cages, can effectively correct adult spine deformities. However, complications and failures are common.

Precise pre-operative planning based on standing X-rays is crucial before attempting correction. Radiographic parameters, including pelvic incidence (PI), sagittal vertical axis (SVA), lumbar lordosis, thoracic kyphosis, coronal Cobb angles, and vertebral rotation, are measured to evaluate the patient's standing posture and compensatory mechanisms.

Limitations in traditional radiological imaging for spinal alignment assessment include ionizing radiation exposure and lack of information on dynamic spine responses during various activities. To address these limitations, marker-based optoelectronic motion analysis systems have been proposed to characterize dynamic spinal alignment and movement during different activities. This technology has shown promise in assessing spinal curvature changes reliably.

This research aims to investigate the feasibility of using optoelectronic motion analysis systems to characterize spinal alignment and balance in patients with adult spine deformity. The primary objective is to assess the practical implementation, measurement capability, and resources required for motion analysis. Secondary objectives include exploring potential strategies to compensate for errors in absolute spinal curvature assessment due to markers on soft tissue.

The study will recruit 20 patients seeking medical attention for adult spine deformities (divided into non-operated and operated subgroups) and 10 healthy controls. Participants will undergo biplanar imaging and motion analysis to capture static and dynamic spine alignment during various activities. The data obtained will be used to build patient-specific musculoskeletal models, offering potential insights into improving surgical planning for adult spine deformities.

The findings of this study may lead to advancements in understanding spinal deformities and help in developing personalized treatment strategies to improve outcomes for patients suffering from adult spine deformities.

02

Conditions studied

  • Spine Deformity

Keywords

  • Adult Spine Deformity
  • Surgical Planning
  • Spinal Deformity
  • Optoelectronic Motion Analysis
  • Biplanar Radiography
  • Absolute Spinal Curvature
03

In context

Lead sponsor

Schulthess Klinik is the lead sponsor of 53 studies on the registry; 11 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 75 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
Yes

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • both male and female subjects
  • \< 30 kg/m2
  • cognitively intact
  • degenerative spinal deformity presenting with at least one criterion:

    • Coronal Cobb angle ≥20°
    • sagittal vertical axis (SVA) ≥5 cm
    • thoracic kyphosis (TK) ≥60°
    • pelvic tilt (PT) ≥25°.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • age under 18 years or over 75 years
  • any prior spinal surgery or other musculoskeletal surgery having an impact on movement
  • pregnancy
  • inability to perform the planned set of daily activities
  • inability to give consent.
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(1)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

BMI (body mass index)

Weight in kilograms divided by height in metres squared. Example: 70 kg and 1.75 m gives 70 ÷ (1.75 × 1.75) ≈ 22.9.

What counts as overweight or obesity differs between countries (some use lower cut-offs), so go by the range the study states.

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Screening
Allocation
Non-randomized
Intervention model
Factorial assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
30 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Active comparator
    patients non-operated

    Each patient will be measured for an EOS x-ray and at the human performance lab at the clinic for optoelectronic motion capture of the spinal movements.

    Diagnostic Test: EOS x-ray · Diagnostic Test: Motion capture

  • Active comparator
    patients operated

    Each patient will be measured for an EOS x-ray and at the human performance lab at the clinic for optoelectronic motion capture of the spinal movement

    Diagnostic Test: EOS x-ray · Diagnostic Test: Motion capture

  • Other
    healthy controls

    Each participant will be measured as control group for an EOS x-ray and at the human performance lab at the clinic for optoelectronic motion capture of the spinal movement

    Diagnostic Test: EOS x-ray · Diagnostic Test: Motion capture

Interventions

  • Diagnostic testEOS x-ray

    After marking the anatomical landmarks where later on skin markers will be placed, radiopaque markers are attached for the radiographic examination with the EOS system. Images are taken from the positions standing and sitting

  • Diagnostic testMotion capture

    The used marker set is the IfB marker set (List et al. 2013), consisting of 40 skin markers on the lower extremities, 7 on the pelvis, 24 on the trunk and 6 on the upper extremities. For the later musculoskeletal modelling the IfB marker set is extended with 7 additional markers on the spinal thoracic processes. All markers will be placed by skilled operators. The test procedure consists of six trials, namely a standing trial in an anatomic upright position and a calibration motion as well as four basic motion tasks to define functional estimated joint axis, respectively centers (each performed twice). Tasks: standing, maximal flexion-extension, lateral bending, axial rotation, lifting, holding load, walking, step up, sitting and sit-to-stand

    Also known as: Optoelectronic camera system

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Feasibility of using motion analysis systems to characterize spinal alignment and balance in static and dynamic conditions

    This primary outcome investigation focuses on assessing key spinal parameters, including lumbar lordosis, pelvic tilt, thoracic kyphosis, and the severity of scoliosis, in static conditions. Additionally, the study captures the same variables during the performance of common daily activities, such as gait, maximal flexion, trunk torsion, lifting loads, walking with loads, and sit-to-stand transitions. The goal is to understand the feasibility of using optoelectronic motion analysis to provide comprehensive insights into spinal alignment and balance for both operated and non-operated adult spine deformity patients.

    Time frame: 1-2hours

Secondary outcomes

  1. investigate and quantify the well-known errors in the assessment of the absolute spinal curvature

    The secondary outcome investigation focuses on exploring and quantifying known errors associated with the assessment of absolute spinal curvature, particularly when soft tissue markers are employed. The study aims to develop strategies to compensate for these errors, considering the challenges posed by attaching markers on top of soft tissues. The objective is to enhance the accuracy of spinal curvature measurements obtained through optoelectronic motion analysis, contributing to improved surgical planning for adult spine deformity cases.

    Time frame: 1-2hours

07

Study locations

1 site
08

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reached

Start is estimated for May 2025; primary completion for Apr 2026, 11 months later.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Sep 5, 2023
First posted
Jan 25, 2024
StartEst.
May 1, 2025
Primary completionEst.
Apr 30, 2026
CompletionEst.
Dec 30, 2026
Last update
Nov 29, 2024
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Nov 29, 2024, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT06223737
Lead sponsor
Schulthess Klinik
Collaborators
ETH Zurich, Bern University of Applied Sciences
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Jan 25, 2024
Start date
May 1, 2025 (estimated)
Primary completion
Apr 30, 2026 (estimated)
Completion
Dec 30, 2026 (estimated)
Last update
Nov 29, 2024

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in Nov 2024. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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