Mobility & Flexibility - Joint Movement

Introduction

In today’s podcast, Dr. Alex Jimenez talks with Juan Corona and Valeria Altamirano about their product, The Leg Length Regulator, and how their device can help individuals with leg length discrepancies as well as improve their overall wellness. 

The Leg Length Regulator

[00:00:02] Dr. Alex Jimenez DC*: Today, we’re going to be presenting an impressive young group of individuals where we’re going to be discussing really what’s unique in El Paso. We got a lot of talent here in this town, and one of the things that we’re going to be talking about is actual professionalism, and science is what college engineering does. Dr. Natalicio is an amazing dynamic principal who’s left a legacy of engineering in the school of UTEP. And one of the things that we have is we have an amazing desire for our youth to want to stay. Now I’ve been here for 30 years, and I’ve been practicing for quite a bit a long time. And what I’ve noticed is that when I first came to El Paso in 1991, many young individuals wanted to leave. It was a very common desire that you wanted to leave if you lived out here. You wanted to go to Washington state, Washington, Harvard, but you didn’t want to return. Today we have a school that is recognized worldwide, and the science department is one of the most amazing departments and well-respected. And it’s always in the top 10 with MIT and schools that are very high in engineering value. So I’ve met many of the students out here over the years, specifically engineering students, and the amazing minds they have and how intelligent they are doesn’t stop the baffle me. It makes me very proud to present certain talents as an individual, parent, and community individual. And today, we’re going to be presenting a group of individuals that have begun a new process, a new endeavor in their lives, and a new beginning. This beginning is one that that is full of mystery, wonder, and amazing science endeavors. So one of the things is that the program that we’re going to discuss will focus on leg length regulations or what they call the leg length regulator. That’s the idea of one Dr. Thomas Sarkodie, who is their teacher, is one of the lead individuals and the one that is is spearheading this program. And now I have to add the privilege of having these two young individuals. I have Juan Corona and Valeria Altamirano. So today I want to do is I want to talk to you guys about these two individuals and specifically about the leg length regulator. This leg length regulator is a new dynamic that is their baby. These guys are master’s students. That means they’ve gone through a long-level education and are in pre Ph.D. programs, which, if they choose to, can become the future in this new design. So I want to present you guys, I’m going to talk first with Mrs. Valeria, and she’s going to go ahead and tell me a bit about this program, as she’s one of the leads and the second chair is Juan. I want to discuss these things and why Genesis is this new product. Genesis, or begun here in El Paso, is about, so Valeria talk to me. Hello. How are you doing?

[00:03:14] Valeria Altamirano: I am doing good. Thank you for having me here.

[00:03:17] Dr. Alex Jimenez DC*: So you guys have started a new product, and is this leg length regulator? Tell me a bit about it because I think El Paso wants to know what we’re doing in the engineering department. What is it?

[00:03:26] Valeria Altamirano: So the likely regulator is a new device that we’re trying to develop, and it’s to focus on patients with leg length discrepancy. And what that is is when your lower limbs are of unequal size. So many people don’t know that they have this kind of illness until they notice that they have a lot of back pain. It’s hard for them to stand right. It’s hard for them to walk, and they just experience a lot of uneasiness when they’re doing things. So for a class project, we were assigned to do research and make a device of our choosing. And Dr. Sarkodie had mentioned if we wanted to look into leg length discrepancy. So I looked into it, and I noticed that many people are affected, especially children and elderly patients. So we went ahead and decided, OK, let’s build something for it, for this cause. And that’s how it came to be the leg length regulator. So what it does is we’re trying to use an LVDT, which is a linear variable differential transformer, and it uses that along with a PD controller and programed into an Arduino. And it’ll help regulate the amount of pressure put on to the foot to help lift it back up to where it is supposed to be so that the patient doesn’t feel pain. The main goal here is to eliminate pain so that children and adults can go on with their everyday lives without having this issue.