Biomechanics and Biotransport Commons^™

Characterization Of Bone Pathology In Sickle Cell Disease And Therapeutic Strategies, Mykel D. Green

Dissertations and Theses

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a genetic hemoglobinopathy that has grown into a global health concern. While the advances in medical treatment and management of SCD during childhood have drastically improved the overall survival of children, the transition from pediatric to adult services is significantly inadequate in comparison. Life expectancies of patients with SCD in first world countries such as the United States are shortened to averages of 42 and 48 years for men and women, respectively. Despite the increasing number of people living with SCD, remarkably, few detailed studies have described the clinical course and complications of the disease …

Development Of A Torque-Based Device For The Quantification Of Arm Rigidity In Patients With Parkinson’S Disease, Georgina O. Miller

Theses and Dissertations

Parkinsonian rigidity is caused by the inability of the muscles to relax and extend properly, due to reduced dopamine levels and often begins on one side of the body before spreading contralaterally. The current standard for determining joint rigidity in a clinical setting is a test completed by the clinician based on the feel of the relaxed wrist and elbow joints as they are passively flexed and extended and a series of ordinal rating scales, the Movement Disorder Society’s – Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS), Hoehn and Yahr Scale (H&Y), and Parkinson’s Disease Questionnaire-39 (PDQ-39). These methods are used …

The Impact Of Aging And Mechanical Injury On Alveolar Epithelial And Macrophage Responses In Acute Lung Injury And Inflammation, Michael S. Valentine

Theses and Dissertations

Patients with severe lung pathologies, such as Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), often require mechanical ventilation as a clinical intervention; however, this procedure frequently exacerbates the original pulmonary issue and produces an exaggerated inflammatory response that potentially leads to sepsis, multisystem organ failure, and mortality. This acute lung injury (ALI) condition has been termed Ventilator-Induced Lung Injury (VILI). Alveolar overdistension, cyclic atelectasis, and biotrauma are the primary injury mechanisms in VILI that lead to the loss of alveolar barrier integrity and pulmonary inflammation. Stress and strains during mechanical ventilation are believed to initiate alveolar epithelial mechanotransduction signaling mechanisms that contribute …

Multidisciplinary Education And Research In Biomathematics For Solving Global Challenges, Padmanabhan Seshaiyer

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Volumetric Muscle Loss: The Role Of Physical Activity And Autologous Repair On Force Recovery And Signaling Pathways, Richard Perry

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Volumetric muscle loss affects both military and civilian persons. The hallmark of this injury is incomplete muscle regeneration, excessive fibrosis, and chronic inflammatory signaling resulting in permanent functional loss. Since permanent functional loss drastically reduces quality of life, many studies have been conducted to improve force recovery. Current scientific literature considers a repair strategy of either devitalized scaffolds infused with growth factors or viable tissue plus activating factors to be the more promising interventions for optimal force recovery. PURPOSE The purpose of this study is to incorporate autologous repair and physical activity and observe the effects of muscle force recovery …

Visual Contributions To Balance Control During Gait, Kyle Brozek

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

We propose to isolate the contributions of continuous OF to the orthogonal relationship between balance and gait control during treadmill walking using a series of conditions. Manipulating the direction of OF using a CAREN (Motek Medical, Amsterdam, Netherlands) virtual reality treadmill environment will isolate these visual contributions in human subjects as they walk. We plan to tease out the effect of OF direction on the relationship between gait and balance control by having healthy young adults perform a series of treadmill walking trials while immersed in a VR environment. This will be done by manipulating the direction of walking and …

Gait Alterations In Peripheral Arterial Disease Are Not Worsened By The Presence Of Diabetes, Hafizur Rahman

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is a vascular disease where atherosclerotic blockages restrict blood flow to muscles in the lower extremities. Diabetes is a common co-morbid condition in PAD and has been shown to increase the risk of lower extremity amputation compared to PAD without diabetes. Although there is a clear pathological relationship between diabetes and PAD, the gait mechanics involved remain indistinct. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine whether the presence of diabetes in addition to PAD results in greater functional impairment during ambulation. Twenty-three subjects with PAD and twelve controls consented to participate in the research. …

The Energy Paradox Of The Ankle-Foot Complex During Human Walking, Nikolaos Papachatzis, Kota Takahashi

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Flexor hallucis longus (FHL) is a multiarticular muscle that possesses the potential to alter foot’s functional and mechanical behavior, since it performs multiple significant functions during walking (e.g supports the medial longitudinal arch of the foot).The purpose of this study was to determine if the functional changes of the FHL are associated with the foot’s adaptations to the mechanical demands of walking. Backward walking is an experimental method capable of altering how the forces propagate underneath the foot and disrupting the mechanical function of the FHL muscle. We hypothesized that: (1) the muscle activity of the FHL will increase during …

Hard, Soft And Off-The-Shelf Foot Orthoses And Their Effect On The Angle Of The Medial Longitudinal Arch: A Biplane Fluoroscopy Study, Megan E.R. Balsdon, Colin E. Dombroski, Kristen Bushey, Thomas Jenkyn

Mechanical and Materials Engineering Publications

Background: Foot orthoses have proven to be effective for conservative management of various pathologies. Pathologies of the lower limb can be caused by abnormal biomechanics such as abnormal foot structure and alignment, leading to inadequate support. Objectives: To compare biomechanical effects of different foot orthoses on the medial longitudinal arch (MLA) during dynamic gait using skeletal kinematics. Study Design: Prospective, cross-sectional study design. Methods: The MLA angle was measured for 12 participants among three groups: pes planus, pes cavus and normal arch. Five conditions were compared: three orthotic devices (hard custom foot orthosis (CFO), soft CFO, and off-the-shelf Barefoot Science©), …

Connecting The Pieces: How Low Back Pain Alters Lower Extremity Biomechanics And Shock Attenuation In Active Individuals, Alexa Johnson

Theses and Dissertations--Rehabilitation Sciences

Low back pain in collegiate athletes has been reported at a rate of 37% from a wide array of sports including soccer, volleyball, football, swimming, and baseball. Whereas, in a military population the prevalence of low back pain is 70% higher than the general population. Compensatory movement strategies are often used as an attempt to reduce pain. Though compensatory movement strategies may effectively reduce pain, they are often associated with altered lower extremity loading patterns. Those who suffer from chronic low back pain tend to walk and run slower and with less trunk and pelvis coordination and variability. Individuals with …

Walking Biomechanics And Energetics Of Individuals With A Visual Impairment: A Preliminary Report, Hunter J. Bennett, Kevin A. Valenzuela, Kristina Fleenor, Steven Morrison, Justin A. Haegele

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

Purpose.

Although walking gait in sighted populations is well researched, few studies have investigated persons with visual impairments (VIs). Given the lack of physical activity in people with VIs, it is possible that reduced efficiency in walking could adversely affect activity. The purposes of this preliminary study were to (1) examine the biomechanics and energetics utilized during independent and guided walking in subjects with VIs, and (2) compare gait biomechanics between people with VIs and sighted controls.

Methods.

Three-dimensional motion capture and force platforms were used during independent and guided walking at self-selected speeds. Joint angles, moments, external work, and …

Development And Exploration Of A Z-Shaped Foot And Ankle Internal Fixation Plate, Rhaz Shaghaghi Paul, Ian Hames, Sean Rich

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This paper will detail the design process of developing a Z-shaped foot and ankle internal fixation plating system. Group 6: Plates for the Sole was made up of 5 team members, who worked together to accommodate their client’s request to complete a biomechanical analysis of a Z-Plate design and a construct a prototype. The Z-Plate’s purpose is to provide podiatrists with a new solution that can fit nicely on the small, irregular bones of the foot, while also remaining strong enough to withstand the forces and torques of the foot.

Use Of Magnetic Resonance Image Registration To Estimate Displacement In The Human Earcanal Due To The Insertion Of In-Ear Devices, Simon Benacchio, Olivier Doutres, Arthur Varoquaux, Éric Wagnac, Arnaud Le Troter, Virginie Callot, Franck Sgard

Études primaires

In-ear devices are used in a wide range of applications for which the device's usability and/or efficiency is strongly related to comfort aspects that are influenced by the mechanical interaction between the device and the walls of the earcanal. Although the displacement of the earcanal walls due to the insertion of the device is an important characteristic of this interaction, existing studies on this subject are very limited. This paper proposes a method to estimate this displacement in vivo using a registration technique on magnetic resonance images. The amplitude, the location and the direction of the earcanal wall displacement are …

Distribution And Localization Of Novel Iodine Nanoparticles In The Human Glioma 1242 Growing In The Brains Of Mice, Benjamin Billings

Honors Scholar Theses

Observing and designing the in vivo distribution and localization of therapeutic nanoparticles is an essential aspect of developing and understanding novel nanoparticle- based medical treatments. This study investigates novel PEGylated Iodine-based nanoparticles (INPs), an alternate composition to the more widely researched gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), which may help avoid adverse effects associated with AuNPs, such as potential toxicity and skin discoloration, when used in similar applications. Determining the localization of the novel INPs within murine brains containing human glioma U-1242MG cells is critical in assisting the development of radiation dose enhancement therapy for this aggressive cancer. Radiation dose enhancement utilizes the …

Extraction And Analysis Of Vector Flow Imaging Data In A Pediatric Population, Bailey Stinnett

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Vector flow imaging (VFI) is a new ultrasound technology that provides real time, angle-independent visualization of flow velocities in the heart and great vessels. Thus far, VFI has been used for superficial applications due to the limited penetration depth of available transducer probes; however, this depth in smaller pediatric patients enables adequate aortic views. In this project, VFI was used to study pediatric aortic stenosis (PAS)—a congenital heart defect that results in the narrowing of the aorta and/or aortic valve. The decision to refer PAS patients for surgical or catheter-based intervention is initially based on Doppler ultrasound. VFI is potentially …

Sex Differences In Lower Limb Biomechanics During A Single-Leg Cut With Body Borne Load, Auralea Carylon Fain

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Musculoskeletal injuries are ever-increasing in military personnel, particularly females. These musculoskeletal injuries are attributed to adaptations in lower limb biomechanics while performing routine military tasks, such as a single-leg cut, with the addition of body borne load. However, it is unknown if females and males exhibit similar lower limb biomechanics with the addition of body borne load during these tasks. This study sought to compare the lower limb biomechanical adaptations exhibited by females and males performing a single-leg cut with body borne load. Methods: Eleven females and 17 males had lower limb biomechanics quantified during a single-leg cut with …

Integration Of A Sensory Driven Model For Hand Grasp Function In 3d Printed Prostheses, Austin T. Hetherington

Senior Theses

My Honors Thesis was completed through the Biomedical Engineering senior design project I worked on. Our project took a mechanically operated 3D printed prosthetic hand and automated the process by which it makes a grasp. The purpose of this project was to provide an affordable, automatic prosthetic hand to those either capable and incapable of wrist flexion. The current 3D printed prosthetic models require users to bend their wrist to initiate a simple grasp. However, our design took an alternative approach by using an EMG sensor placed on the ventral side of the forearm to record muscle activity, which, upon …

Design And Analysis Of A 3d-Printed, Thermoplastic Elastomer (Tpe) Spring Element For Use In Corrective Hand Orthotics, Kevin Thomas Richardson

Theses and Dissertations--Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

This thesis proposes an algorithm that determine the geometry of 3D-printed, custom-designed spring element bands made of thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) for use in a wearable orthotic device to aid in the physical therapy of a human hand exhibiting spasticity after stroke. Each finger of the hand is modeled as a mechanical system consisting of a triple-rod pendulum with nonlinear stiffness at each joint and forces applied at the attachment point of each flexor muscle. The system is assumed quasi-static, which leads to a torque balance between the flexor tendons in the hand, joint stiffness and the design force applied to …

The Effect Of Tackling Training On Head Accelerations In Youth American Football, Eric Schussler, Richard J. Jagacinski, Susan E. White, Ajit M. Chaudhari, John A. Buford, James A. Onate

Rehabilitation Sciences Faculty Publications

Background: Many organizations have introduced frameworks to reduce the incidence of football related concussions through proper equipment fitting, coach education, and alteration of tackling technique.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of training in a vertical, head up tackling style on the number of head accelerations experienced while tackling in a controlled laboratory situation. The authors hypothesized that training in a head up tackling technique would reduce the severity of head acceleration experienced by participants.

Design: Controlled Laboratory Study.

Methods: Twenty-four participants (11.5 ± 0.6 years old, 60.5 ± 2.2 in, 110 ± 18.4 lbs.) …

Biomechanical Testing Of An Exercise For Strengthening The Proximal Femur., Alyssa Osbourne

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Based on the principles of cutting edge bone remodeling research, a unique therapeutic exercise device was designed specifically to improve bone quality at the most critical location of the proximal femur prone to fracture: the superior-lateral femoral neck where the fracture first initiates during a fall. The exercise/device is intended to work by inducing enough strain in the bone to stimulate the body’s natural bone remodeling mechanisms to increase bone density in the proximal femur and consequently prevent a fracture from arising if a fall to the side does occur.

In order to test the proposed exercise, experiments simulating the …

A Deterministic Model Of The Effect Of Electric Field On Chemotherapeutics Delivery Into A Tumor, Maryam Moarefian, Luke Achenie

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Walking Speed On Gait Propulsion When Wearing An Ankle-Foot Orthosis, Alli Kalina

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is a cardiovascular disease that results from blockage of one or more arteries in the lower extremity. Often, patients with PAD have reduced ability to push off with the foot at the end of the gait cycle. When walking, the ankle contributes the majority of the power to propel the body into the next step. An ankle-foot orthosis (AFO) is a device that aids in ankle propulsion by increasing the energy return, thus decreasing the ankle deficit in pathological individuals. The purpose is to investigate the effect of walking speed on ankle propulsion during walking. Subjects …

Age-Related Differences In The Lumbopelvic Kinematics During The Trunk Motions In The Anatomical Planes, Milad Vazirian

Theses and Dissertations--Biomedical Engineering

Management and control of the low back pain as an important health problem in the industrial societies necessitates to investigate how the risk of this disease is affected by aging. Since the abnormalities of the lumbopelvic kinematics are related to the existence or risk of low back injuries, the objective of this dissertation was set to find the age-related differences in lumbopelvic kinematics when performing basic trunk motions reaching to range of motion in different anatomical planes.

A cross-sectional study was designed where sixty asymptomatic individuals between 20–70 years old with no confounding health condition, no current or previous highly …

The Effect Of Twist On The Mechanical Properties Of The Intervertebral Disc, Maxine Harvey-Burgess

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Introduction: Intervertebral disc (IVD) herniation is a common injury to the IVD and a frequent source of low back pain. IVD herniation occurs when the nucleus pulposus migrates through both the inter- and intralamellar matrices of the annulus fibrosus (AF). There are a number of mechanical risk factors associated with herniation, including repetitive flexion and twist. In vivo, twist combined with repetitive flexion has been associated with increased experience of low back pain and herniation. Additionally, in vitro, when repetitive flexion is combined with twist, IVD herniation occurs more easily than repetitive flexion alone. However, the mechanisms behind …

Ball Pressure Correlations With Peak Impact Force And The Potential For Cumulative Mtbi When Heading A Soccer Ball, Nicolas Leiva, Daniel Y. Shyu, Josh Auger, Eric Nauman

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Soccer is a unique sport in which athletes use their heads as tools for gameplay, which may ultimately cause cumulative traumatic brain injuries. Due to rising popularity of soccer in the United States alongside the increased occurrence of CTE and mTBI in other contact sports, there is a growing concern over how to keep the repetitive forces caused by heading, as low as possible. Different variables that can affect the peak force felt when heading a soccer ball can be simulated and compared with in-game data, however, this has never been properly tested before. In the present study two size …

Development Of Standard Criteria To Evaluate The Effectiveness Of Helmets At Decreasing The Risk Of Concussions, Daniel Y. Shyu, Goutham N. Sankaran, Kevin G. Mciver, Nicolas Leiva, Eric A. Nauman

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

In many sports, such as American football, accumulations of mild traumatic brain injuries have been suggested as a possible link to neurodegeneration and future mental disorders. With head impacts occurring at all levels of competition and in different sports, it is critical to develop an accurate method for quantifying the effects of head impacts and determining the efficacy of helmets. This study examines the derivation of different dimensionless numbers and ascertains the critical factors needed to predict the effects of head impacts, specifically the resulting accelerations from an impact. Given a known force of impact, parameters such as peak translation …

A Microfluidic-Based Tactile Sensor For Palpating Mice Tumor Tissues, Yichao Yang, Garett Johnson, Dean Krusienski, Siqi Guo, Cheng Lin, Zhili Hao

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

In light of the need of tissue palpation for Robotics-assisted Minimally Invasive Surgery (RMIS), this paper presents a microfluidic-based tactile sensor for palpating mice tissues for tumor localization. The core of the sensor is a 3x3 sensing-plate/transducer array built into a single polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microstructure, with a transducer spacing of 3.75mmx1.5mm. Mounted on a robot, the sensor is pressed against a tissue region with a pre-defined indentation depth pattern, and consequently the stiffness distribution across the tissue region translates to the deflection distribution of the sensing-plate array and is captured by the transducer array underneath as resistance changes. Thus, the …

Changes In Vessel Properties During Early Progression Of Murine Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms From In Vivo Ultrasound, Luis R. Avila Murati, Evan H. Phillips, Craig J. Goergen

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) are a common and frequently fatal disease characterized by the weakening and dilation of the aorta. The larger the aneurysm, the higher the chances are of rupturing and life-threatening hemorrhage. The aim of this study is to apply the angiotensin II (AngII) model of AAAs in male apolipoprotein-E-deficient mice (apoE^-/- C57Bl/6J), in order to analyze, quantify, and understand the pathologies and characteristics associated with early AAA development. To date, many studies focusing on the evaluation of AAA characteristics have been performed ex vivo. Therefore, we focused on in vivo assessment, through the use of …

Emg And Kinematic Responses To Unexpected Slips After Slip Training In Virtual Reality, Prakriti Parijat, Thurmon E. Lockhart, Jian Liu

Computer Sciences and Electrical Engineering Faculty Research

The objective of the study was to design a virtual reality (VR) training to induce perturbation in older adults similar to a slip and examine the effect of the training on kinematic and muscular responses in older adults. Twenty-four older adults were involved in a laboratory study and randomly assigned to two groups (VR training and control). Both groups went through three sessions including baseline slip, training, and transfer of training on slippery surface. The training group experienced 12 simulated slips using a visual perturbation induced by tilting a VR scene while walking on the treadmill and the control group …

Blast-Induced Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Through Ear Canal: A Finite Element Study, Praveen Akula, Yi Hua, Linxia Gu

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Faculty Publications

Purpose The role of ear canal in transmitting blast waves to the brain is not clear. The goal of this work is to characterize the influence of ear canal on blast-induced mild traumatic brain injury through a computational approach.

Methods A three-dimensional human head model with single-side ear canal details was reconstructed from computed tomography images. The ear canal was positioned either facing the incident blast wave or facing away from the blast wave.

Results The blast wave-head interaction has demonstrated that the overpressure within the ear canal was substantially amplified when the ear directly faced the blast wave. When …