Researchers are developing a monitoring system similar to those used by earthquake seismologists to detect tiny cracks in bones, a technology that could help prevent fractures in humans and racehorses. The new monitoring system records "acoustic emission data," or sound waves created by the tiny bone fissures. The same sorts of acoustic emissions are used to monitor the integrity of bridges, other structures, and mechanical parts like helicopter turbine blades, said Ozan Akkus, an associate professor in Purdue University’s Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering.

Whitey, a 14-year-old Standardbred, wears a prototype monitoring system while walking on a treadmill at the Purdue Large Animal Hospital with the aid of his trainer Crystal Hagan, a registered large animal veterinary technician. In the background are Ozan Akkus, an associate professor in the Purdue Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, and Stephen Adams, a veterinarian and professor in the Purdue School of Veterinary Medicine. Akkus and Adams are developing a monitoring system that uses sound waves to check for "microcracks" that form in bones and can lead to stress fractures.

"When a microcrack occurs in a bone it generates sound waves similar to those created by earthquakes," Akkus said. "The goal is to create a wearable device that would alert the person when a stress fracture was imminent so that they could stop rigorous physical activity long enough for the bone to heal