Clinical Research Directory

Multimodal Quantified Analysis of Facial Movements: Comparison Between Pathological and Control Subjects

The facial palsy is a frequent disease with a lot of etiologies. It has variable severities with sometimes heavy functional repercussions and different recovery potentials. The proposed treatments are based on surgery, physiotherapy and botulinum toxin injections. However, when recovery is incomplete, acceptance is more difficult, with an impacted quality of life. Thanks to Motion Capture and Electromyography, a quantification of the facial mimicry is now possible with a great precision. In addition with the quantification of the facial mimicry, eye-tracking, wich is widely used in the marketing field, but it also finds medical applications including head and neck lesions and facial palsy in particular, will be used to evaluate the visio of the patients on their pathology in function of the movement quantification measured with MoCap and Electromyography. The aim of this research is to measure in a combined way the action potentials by sEMG and the amplitudes of displacement of the markers in motion capture, for movements determined in a population of patients presenting a facial pathology, in order to compare them with reference values obtained in healthy subjects. In a second step, the aim will be to study if there is a link between the way the patient looks at his pathology and the results of his management (treatment, rehabilitation) which will be quantitatively evaluated thanks to MoCap and sEMG.

Muscle Activity of the Gastrocnemius and Soleus Muscles by Surface Electromyography.

This cross-sectional, comparative study aims to evaluate and compare the surface electromyographic (sEMG) activity of the gastrocnemius (medial and lateral) and soleus muscles during static and dynamic contraction tasks. Participants will perform three tests-resting state, isometric, concentric, and eccentric contraction, and dynamic gait-with bilateral measurements. A subgroup analysis will examine muscle activity variations based on foot posture, using the Foot Posture Index (FPI). The study uses the validated mDurance® sEMG system to obtain objective data under controlled lab conditions. The findings will enhance understanding of the functional role of each muscle and could inform rehabilitation and injury prevention strategies.

Diagnosing Obstructive Sleep Apnea Using Electromyography of the Muscles of the Mouth

The investigators will establish how well a novel, quick, and painless way of measuring muscle activity from the mouth and throat works for detecting sleep apnea. This technology is called transmembraneous electromyography (tmEMG). Leveraging two technologies, a new probe capable of recording muscle activity by lightly touching the muscle, as well as a machine learning model for signal interpretation, the investigators will conduct an initial observational feasibility study in phase 1, followed by a larger observational cohort study in phase 2 to assess the performance of deep learning enhanced tmEMG. The study will address a critical unmet need in sleep apnea diagnostics: the availability of an inexpensive, accurate diagnostic test for screening at point of care.

Micro-EMG: A Novel Multi-electrode System for Intramuscular Imaging

The purpose of this small-scale exploratory study is to bridge the knowledge gap between the bench testing and the design of potential future confirmative studies. Identifying and evaluating MicroEMG measurement parameters in this exploratory manner is a necessary step to evaluate its usability and design, and determine whether the microEMG system may be suitable for in-house use after further confirmative testing.