A collaborative research effort headquartered at Uniformed Services University (USU) is using a body-worn sensor system to predict the risk of musculoskeletal injuries in paratroopers and design interventions to prevent those injuries.
The Musculoskeletal Injury Rehabilitation Research for Operational Readiness (MIRROR) program uses technology developed at the University of Miami to identify movement asymmetries that are predictive of musculoskeletal injury. The collaboration also includes the Army's 82nd Airborne Division, High Point University and The Geneva Foundation.
Photo caption: A MIRROR study participant performs a balance test while wearing sensor-equipped knee sleeves. The research is analyzing whether test results that show asymmetries between limbs can be used to identify people at high risk of musculoskeletal injury. (Photo credit: Dr. Ignacio Guanaurd, University of Miami)