Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

The Effect Of Obstacle Intervals On Foot Integrated Pressure And Obstacle Negotiation Strategy, Zhuo Wang

Theses & Dissertations

When stepping over a single obstacle, despite of some spatiotemporal parameter changes, the impulse of the leading and trailing leg stays the same. This is considered an efficient obstacle avoidance strategy. However, research has shown that the strategy of multiple obstacles negotiation is different from a single obstacle crossing. Would this efficient strategy still exist during multiple obstacles negotiation? This study attempted to answer this question. Nineteen healthy young adults were recruited in this study. Each participant was required to complete 15 trials under 3 conditions: one-step, two-step, and three-step intervals. Data were collected for foot integrated pressure (FIP), walking …

Adaptation Of Human Locomotion And Unilateral Limb Loading During Different Inclination Treadmill Walking, Yuhang Zhang

Theses & Dissertations

Human locomotion is adaptive in any external environment or different terrains, which has been widely investigated. For example, people can walk at different walking speeds in each leg on a split-belt treadmill. However, human locomotor behaviors are passively adapted during the split-belt treadmill walking. Therefore, the knowledge of how humans actively adjust the flexibility of locomotion is limited by using the split-belt treadmill. To address this gap, this study investigated the flexibility of locomotion by using a 4-lb ankle weight on the dominant leg to induce the asymmetric walking pattern when walking on the inclined, declined, and level treadmill. Twenty …

Quantifying Fear Of Falling By Utilizing Objective Body Sway And Muscle Contraction Measures, Chenfan Gui

Theses & Dissertations

Fear of falling (FOF) is a psychological condition that can lead to increased morbidity and mortality in the elder population. However, the subjective and multidimensional nature of FOF resulted in the limitations of existing FOF measurements, which could influence the quality of those studies. The present study aimed to quantify FOF by using objective center of pressure (COP) trajectories and muscle contraction of the lower extremity to compensate for those limitations. Nineteen young healthy adults (24 years ± 2.47) were recruited in the present study. Subjects were required to watch three 360-degree videos, one control video and two roller coaster …

Is The Walking Pattern Similar Between Slope Walking And Obstacle Negotiation?, Jiani Lu

Theses & Dissertations

Studying biomechanical characteristics of human motion sheds light on the motor control strategies in the central nervous system. Slope walking and obstacle negotiation appear to have some similarities in control strategies based on subjective observation, but these two motions have never been compared objectively in biomechanics literature. This study aimed to investigate the similarities between obstacle negotiation and slope walking in kinematics and muscle activity. The similarities were determined by the correlation of the maximum heel elevation and muscle co-activation index between obstacle negotiation and inclined treadmill walking. The strength of correlation was compared in four different pairs of conditions: …

Maternal Cognitions And The Origins Of Early Sensorimotor Based Play In Infants Born Preterm, Sandra L. Willett

Theses & Dissertations

Maternal cognitions are beliefs, perceptions, and expectations that guide parenting practices. For at-risk infants born prematurely, these maternal constructs may influence the caregiving environment and opportunities for motor experience. The impact of maternal cognitions on motor development in infants born preterm is not well-documented. This three-part dissertation systematically explores: 1) the nature and extent of existing evidence supporting the link between maternal cognitions and motor development of infants born preterm, 2) if maternal perception of infant vulnerability as measured by an adapted Vulnerable Baby Scale (VBS) can be validly and reliably quantified in mothers of infants born preterm and near …

Early Career Physical Therapy Faculty Networking And Scholarly Productivity: A Mixed-Methods Study, Betsy J. Becker

Theses & Dissertations

While it is well-known that physical therapist (PT) faculty must retain a scholarly agenda, few report being activity engaged and many programs have low scholarly dissemination. There is evidence that knowledge of the make-up of a faculty network leads to improved performance and innovation. The purpose of this explanatory sequential mixed methods study was to explore agency (behaviors and perspectives about career advancement) and the professional network structure and composition of early career PT faculty as they relate to scholarly activity. This dissertation research study included 50 early career faculty who worked in accredited entry-level physical therapy programs.

The quantitative …

Effects Of Two High-Frequency Physical Therapy Programs On Balance, Gait, Fatigue, And Quality Of Life In People With Multiple Sclerosis, Min Liu

Theses & Dissertations

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory disease involving the inflammation and demyelination in both brain and spinal cord. MS typically affects people in early adulthood in the range of 20-40 years old, and most patients with MS experience symptoms on a daily basis, such as walking difficulties, balance impairment, and fatigue, which can be disabling and impact the Quality of Life (QOL).

The main purpose of this investigation is to determine if our novel, adaptive, high-frequency physical therapy protocol, compared with the conventional therapeutic exercise protocol, has the potential to improve participants’ dynamic balance, gait, fatigue, and overall QOL based …

Identification And Intervention For Action Planning Deficits In Children With Hemiplegic Cerebral Palsy, Swati M. Surkar

Theses & Dissertations

The primary purpose of this investigation was to describe and quantify action-planning deficits during goal-directed movements in children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy (HCP). Three specific topics were addressed: brain activation, kinematics, and the use of visual input. First, we assessed prefrontal cortex (PFC) activation during complex goal-directed actions in children with HCP. The outcome suggested that children with HCP have higher PFC activation than age matched typically developing (TD) children during action planning, potentially due to the difficulty in allocating attentional resources for simultaneously processing the cognitive (i.e., attention, memory, information processing) and motor demands of the goal-directed task. Reduced …

Mobility Of Individuals With Multiple Sclerosis And The Influence Of Physical Therapy, Brenda L. Davies

Theses & Dissertations

One main purpose was to explore the compensatory gait strategies of individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS). To address this purpose, we quantified the mechanical work generated by the lower extremity joints during walking. The outcomes from this investi­gation suggested that individuals with MS redistribute positive mechanical work during walking to the hip in order to compensate for a reduced ability of the ankle to generate positive mechanical work. Additionally, we also explored the motor control of the ankle as a potential contributing factor to the mobility limitations of individuals with MS. The outcomes from this investigation indicated that individuals with …

Measurement Of Daily Energy Expenditure In Individuals With Chronic Heart Failure, Yanlong Li

Theses & Dissertations

Being able to accurately monitor and quantify the amount of physical activity an individual with chronic heart failure (CHF) performs can be of assistance in developing appropriate interventions. This thesis attempted to evaluate the validity of the RT3 accelerometer (RT3) and 7-day Physical Activity Recall Questionnaire (7 day PAR) in measuring the daily activity levels of community dwelling individuals with CHF. Fifty-four individuals with CHF participated in a 7 day session to estimate their daily physical activity by using the RT3 accelerometer and 7-day PAR questionnaire. In addition, 15 of the 54 individuals participated in a second study in with …

Postural Responses To Perturbations Of The Vestibular System During Walking In Healthy Young And Older Adults, Jung Hung Chien

Theses & Dissertations

It has been shown that approximate one-third of US adults aged 40 years and older (69 million US citizens) have some type of vestibular problems. These declining abilities of the vestibular system affect quality of life. Difficulties in performing daily activities (dressing, bathing, getting in and out of the bed and etc.) have been highly correlated to loss of balance due to vestibular disorders. The exact number of people affected by vestibular disorders is still difficult to quantify. This might be because symptoms are difficult to describe and differences exist in the qualifying criteria within and across studies. Thus, it …

The Feedforward And Feedback Controls On Gait In Adults With Diabetes, Chun-Kai Huang

Theses & Dissertations

There are nearly 26 million people with diabetes mellitus (DM) in the US, and half of chronic DMs develop somatosensory deficits due to diabetic polyneuropathy or diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). The absence or impaired somatosensory feedback (e.g. touch sensation or joint proprioception) resulted from the damage of large nerve fiber, and motor deficits such as attenuated muscle strength and abnormal plantar pressure of lower extremity have been identified in DPN, and these sensorimotor impairments lead to an increased number of falls. To reduce the risk of falling, a well-coordinated and adapted limb movement driven by the feedforward (anticipatory) and feedback …