How pregnancy changes body shape and movement
Capturing body segment changes during pregnancy to develop an accurate biomechanical model.
Measures how body shape, weight distribution, and joint loads change during pregnancy to build better movement models for people who work while pregnant.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R03 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | William Paterson University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Wayne, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11195508 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you join, you'll have repeated body measurements through your pregnancy to track changes in mass, center of mass, and limb and trunk shape. The team will use these measurements to create a geometric model plus two statistical (regression) models that predict how body segments change at different pregnancy stages. The models will be made publicly available so ergonomists, clinicians, and employers can use them. The aim is to improve calculations of forces and joint loads when pregnant people perform tasks at work.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are people who are pregnant early enough to participate in repeated measurements, plan to continue working through pregnancy, and can attend in-person visits.
Not a fit: People who are not pregnant, who cannot attend multiple visits, or who have high-risk pregnancies that prevent participation are unlikely to benefit directly from this work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could lead to ergonomic guidelines and tools that reduce injury, strain, and discomfort for pregnant workers.
How similar studies have performed: Previous work has relied on whole-body measures like BMI, and detailed longitudinal body-segment models specific to pregnancy are largely novel.
Where this research is happening
Wayne, United States
- William Paterson University — Wayne, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wicke, Jason — William Paterson University
- Study coordinator: Wicke, Jason
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.