THE STUDY OF HUMAN-BODY SEGMENT PARAMETERS IN BIOMECHANICS - AN HISTORICAL REVIEW AND CURRENT STATUS-REPORT

The history of the techniques used to assess body segment parameters f or biomechanical analysis has been reviewed. Three time periods of res earch were defined, based on the predominant instrumentation used, lea ding up to the modern era of computed tomography and magnetic resonanc e imagery. Organised in this manner, the significant techniques and fi ndings were discussed. Current databases are deficient in several aspe cts: the small number of study participants used for development of st andards, the potential inaccuracy of cadaver data compared with that o f living humans, and the relative lack of study of diverse populations . Future efforts should be directed towards addressing these weaknesse s in body segment parameter information, in order to improve biomechan ical investigation in the clinical, ergonomic and sport environments.