The study of the mechanical design of living organisms is one of the most rapidly expanding areas of biological research. Greater understanding of the ways in which an animal's body responds to mechanical stress has resulted in significant advances in the fields of zoology, physiology, and biomedical engineering. This volume is the first to provide a compilation of experimental protocols for researchers in these areas. This detailed work evaluates the performance of structures within the musculoskeletal and circulatory systems in the context of their physical activities. Topics covered include: mechanical work in locomotion; aerodynamics of flight; in vivo measurement of bone strain and tendon force; hydrostatic skeletons and muscular hydrostats; and circulatory structure and mechanics. Biomechanics - Structure and Systems: A Practical Approach and its companion Biomechanics - Materials: A Practical Approach together provide a comprehensive resource of proven experimental protocols and expert guidance for researchers in zoology, physiology, biomedical engineering, and related fields.

Unique in its direct and comprehensive approach, this Third Edition presents a working knowledge of biomechanical principles for use in the evaluation and treatment of musculoskeletal dysfunction. Three sections address the biomechanics of musculoskeletal tissues and structures, the biomechanics of joints, and applied biomechanics. This edition's new introductory chapter explains the importance of biomechanics study and includes the "International System of Units" appendix. A new section on "Applied Biomechanics" includes chapters on fracture fixation; arthroplasty; standing, sitting, and lying; and gait. Boxes with biomechanical computations promote comprehension of biomechanical principles. Practical examples and clinical case studies apply biomechanical knowledge to practice. Additional illustrations, including radiological images, enhance comprehension. A Brandon-Hill recommended title.

Every year workers' low-back, hand, and arm problems lead to time away from jobs and reduce the nation's economic productivity. The connection of these problems to workplace activities-from carrying boxes to lifting patients to pounding computer keyboards-is the subject of major disagreements among workers, employers, advocacy groups, and researchers. Musculoskeletal Disorders and the Workplace examines the scientific basis for connecting musculoskeletal disorders with the workplace, considering people, job tasks, and work environments. A multidisciplinary panel draws conclusions about the likelihood of causal links and the effectiveness of various intervention strategies. The panel also offers recommendations for what actions can be considered on the basis of current information and for closing information gaps. This book presents the latest information on the prevalence, incidence, and costs of musculoskeletal disorders and identifies factors that influence injury reporting. It reviews the broad scope of evidence: epidemiological studies of physical and psychosocial variables, basic biology, biomechanics, and physical and behavioral responses to stress. Given the magnitude of the problem-approximately 1 million people miss some work each year-and the current trends in workplace practices, this volume will be a must for advocates for workplace health, policy makers, employers, employees, medical professionals, engineers, lawyers, and labor officials.

The book is written by leading experts in the field presenting an up-to-date view of the subject matter in a didactically sound manner. It presents a review of the current knowledge of the behaviour of soft tissues in the cardiovascular system under mechanical loads, and the importance of constitutive laws in understanding the underlying mechanics is highlighted. Cells are also described together with arteries, tendons and ligaments, heart, and other biological tissues of current research interest in biomechanics. This includes experimental, continuum mechanical and computational perspectives, with the emphasis on nonlinear behaviour, and the simulation of mechanical procedures such as balloon angioplasty.

Offering a review of the biomechanical design of organisms, from bacteria onwards, this book shows how the bodies of animals & plants are masterpieces of engineering, enabling them to survive in a hostile world.

Biomechanics is a component of Encyclopedia of Physical Sciences, Engineering and Technology Resources in the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), which is an integrated compendium of twenty one Encyclopedias. The enormous progress in the field of health sciences that has been achieved in the 19th and 20th centuries would have not been possible without the enabling interaction and support of sophisticated technologies that progressively gave rise to a new interdisciplinary field named alternatively as bioengineering or biomedical engineering. Although both terms are synonymous, the latter is less general since it limits the field of application to medicine and clinical practice, while the former covers semantically the whole field of interaction between life sciences and engineering, thus including also applications in biology, biochemistry or the many '-omics'. We use in this book the second, with more general meaning, recalling the very important relation between fundamental science and engineering. And this also recognizes the tremendous economic and social impacts of direct application of engineering in medicine that maintains the health industry as one with the fastest growth in the world economy. Biomechanics, in particular, aims to explain and predict the mechanics of the different components of living beings, from molecules to organisms as well as to design, manufacture and use of any artificial device that interacts with the mechanics of living beings. It helps, therefore, to understand how living systems move, to characterize the interaction between forces and deformation along all spatial scales, to analyze the interaction between structural behavior and microstructure, with the very important particularity of dealing with adaptive systems, able to adapt their internal structure, size and geometry to the particular mechanical environment in which they develop their activity, to understand and predict alterations in the mechanical function due to injuries, diseases or pathologies and, finally, to propose methods of artificial intervention for functional diagnosis or recovery. Biomechanics is today a very highly interdisciplinary subject that attracts the attention of engineers, mathematicians, physicists, chemists, material specialists, biologists, medical doctors, etc. They work in many different topics from a purely scientific objective to industrial applications and with an increasing arsenal of sophisticated modeling and experimental tools but always with the final objectives of better understanding the fundamentals of life and improve the quality of life of human beings. One purpose in this volume has been to present an overview of some of these many possible subjects in a self-contained way for a general audience. This volume is aimed at the following major target audiences: University and College Students, Educators, Professional Practitioners, and Research Personnel.