Quantifying the Mechanical Properties of Diseased Muscle

Principal Investigator: William Durfee, Ph.D.

Human muscle exists to produce force and motion for human function. Muscle function is mechanical, yet current clinical examination and diagnosis methods largely ignore the rich mechanical properties of muscle, stopping simply at  “weak/strong” categorizing of isometric force. Muscles have force-length, force velocity, activation, recruitment, and fatigue properties, all of which can be elicited using electrical stimulation while measuring the resulting force and motion output. Prior work in our lab, including recent work under NASH funding, has focused on the complete mechanical characterization of muscle for applications in the control of systems that restore function to paralyzed limbs through functional electrical stimulation. In this project, we propose to continue to refine and customize these methods for identifying the mechanical properties of diseased muscle, possibly opening up innovative, simple methods for non-invasive diagnosis of muscle diseases, and tracking muscle changes during disease treatment.