Rehabilitation and Therapy Commons^™

Biomechanical Analysis Of Race Walking Compared To Normal Walking And Running Gait, Jaclyn D. Norberg

Theses and Dissertations--Kinesiology and Health Promotion

Human locomotion is phenomenon that is extraordinarily complex. It is evident that a complete description of locomotion involves consideration of kinematics, kinetics, and muscle activity of the extremities in all of their various movements. Race walking (RW) is a form of upright locomotion that differs from normal walking and running by its form dictated by the International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF). Despite the similarities to both normal walking (NW) and running (RU), RW has not been the subject of equally intensive investigations.

This study explores the comprehensive biomechanics of race walking and how it compares to NW and RU. A …

The Effects Of Spinal Manipulative Therapy On Isokinetic Strength And Postactivation Potentiation, Grant D. Sanders

Theses and Dissertations--Kinesiology and Health Promotion

Spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) is a therapeutic procedure employed by various healthcare practitioners for alleviating acute and chronic musculoskeletal complaints. This form of treatment is also delivered to enhance the performance and augment the rehabilitation of athletes. However, despite research findings alleging the strength-modulating effects of SMT alongside numerous professional athletes’ positive anecdotal claims concerning its results, the physiological processes to explain its effects remain largely unexplained. Therefore, the purpose of this work was to investigate the effects of SMT in a college-aged sample population with two experiments.

The first study examined the effect of SMT targeting the lumbosacral region …

Alterations In Visual Processing And Its Impact On Upright Postural Stability In Athletes Following Sport-Related Concussion, Andrea E. Cripps

Theses and Dissertations--Rehabilitation Sciences

Athletes are at risk of sustaining a concussion in all sports and at all competitive levels which may lead to balance impairments. Balance results from the integration of visual, vestibular, and somatosensory information. The underlying pathophysiology for balance impairments is not well understood and visuo-motor processing impairments and how these impairments contribute to balance in concussed athletes has not been reported. Objectives: (1) to investigate the influence of visual perturbation on upright postural stability and balance in athletes who have recently suffered a sports-related concussion, (2) to establish the test-retest reliability of a simple visuo-motor processing task. Design: A longitudinal, …

Effects Of Proximal Stability Training On Sport Performance And Proximal Stability Measures, Thomas Gerard Palmer

Theses and Dissertations--Rehabilitation Sciences

Proximal stability, or the ability to stabilize and actively control the spine, pelvis and trunk, has been reported to influence sport performance. Traditional training practices for the proximal segments have had little success improving sport performance. The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate the effects a sport specific proximal stability training program can have on throwing velocity and measures of muscular endurance and power which target the proximal segments of the pelvis, spine and trunk.

A stratified randomized clinical trial was implemented with a pre- to post-intervention design. Forty-six healthy, Division III collegiate female softball (n=17) and male baseball …

The Development Of The Self-Efficacy Of Balance Scale (Sebs): Investigation Of Psychometric Properties In Female Basketball Players, Carrie Silkman Baker

Theses and Dissertations--Rehabilitation Sciences

Lower extremity injuries are the most common sports related injury. Many steps have been taken to attempt to identify individuals who might be at a higher risk for sustaining a lower extremity injury. Resource and time intensive screening techniques have been used previously to attempt to identify such individuals. However these techniques have focused heavily on postural control and landing mechanics in athletes, no psychological measure has been used to identify individuals who might be at a higher risk of lower extremity injury.

Self-efficacy of balance can be defined as how capable an individual feels he or she can balance …