A two-phase computational biomechanics model for successful rehabilitation after hip and knee surgery

Abstract

© 2017, Springer Science+Business Media B.V. We propose a two-phase computational biomechanical model for a successful rehabilitation after hip and/or knee replacement surgery. The first phase, conducted before the surgery, consists of a neuro-electro-muscular stimulation applied for passive strengthening of the involved muscular kinetic chains. These are computationally modeled as a recurrent reaction–diffusion system. The second phase, to be performed after the surgery, is a cyclic-type full-leg rehabilitation exercise (using as an example riding a stationary bicycle ergometer, but applicable also to walking, swimming, running and non-stationary bicycle riding—which are all standard rehabilitation exercises after hip and knee surgery) modeled using nonlinear Lagrangian biomechanics of a human leg.