Dr. Heather Feldner named KL2 Scholar, 2018 Cohort

Keshia Awards, News

Heather Feldner is pictured in a headshotWe are very proud to announce that Dr. Heather Feldner has been named a KL2 Scholar. Heather is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Ability & Innovation Lab, and has received support through 2021 to pursue one of her missions of improving mobility interventions for young children with movement challenges.

Project Title: Improving translational capacity in early powered mobility intervention: Investigating the socio-emotional impacts of modified ride-on car use by children with disabilities and their families

To learn more, click this link.

 

KM Peters, VE Kelly, T Chang, MC Weismann, S Westcott McCoy, KM Steele (2018) “Muscle recruitment and coordination during upper-extremity functional tests.” Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology

Keshia JournalArticle, Publications ,

Journal article in Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology:

In collaboration with Rehabilitation Medicine here at the University of Washington, we evaluated muscle use of 20 unimpaired participants during three upper-extremity functional tests. An interactive supplement can be found HERE.

Recruitment and cocontration plots of eight upper-extremity muscles during the Jebsen Taylor Hand Function Test.Background: Performance-based tests, such as the Jebsen Taylor Hand Function Test or Chedoke Arm and Hand Activity Inventory, are commonly used to assess functional performance after neurologic injury. However, the muscle activity required to execute these tasks is not well understood, even for unimpaired individuals. The purpose of this study was to evaluate unimpaired muscle recruitment and coordination of the dominant and non-dominant limbs during common clinical tests.

Methods: Electromyography (EMG) recordings from eight arm muscles were monitored bilaterally for twenty unimpaired participants while completing these tests. Average signal magnitudes, activation times, and cocontraction levels were calculated from the filtered EMG data, normalized by maximum voluntary isometric contractions (MVICs).

Results: Overall, performance of these functional tests required low levels of muscle activity, with average EMG magnitudes less than 6.5% MVIC for all tests and muscles, except the extensor digitorum, which had higher activations across all tasks (11.7 ± 2.7% MVIC, dominant arm). When averaged across participants, cocontraction was between 25 and 62% for all tests and muscle pairs.

Conclusion: Tasks evaluated by speed of completion, rather than functional quality of movement demonstrated higher levels of muscle recruitment. These results provide baseline measurements that can be used to evaluate muscle-specific deficits after neurologic injury and track recovery using common clinical tests.

 

 

AccessEngineering featured on UW College of Engineering’s website

Dr. Steele AccessEngineering, News, Projects , ,

Thanks to AccessEngineering and other DO-IT programs, I don’t feel like I’m pursuing my education alone, or that I have to figure out how to overcome obstacles that others don’t have to by myself.

AccessEngineering, an interdisciplinary universal design program co-led by Dr. Kat Steele at the University of Washington, was featured on the College of Engineering’s news webpage.

Since it’s launch in 2014, AccessEngineering has sought to champion the development of a diverse, well-prepared workforce of engineering graduates and university faculty. One of the key ways that this program seeks to promote this agenda is by increasing general participation of individuals with disabilities in engineering. AccessEngineering also aims to promote their core goals by improving engineering education. The primary means by which this group seeks to enrich the curriculum is by integrating disability-related and universal design content into engineering courses.

Dr. Kat Steele coordinates AccessEngineering at the UW with Dr. Maya Cakmak, an assistant professor in the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering, and Dr. Sheryl Burgstahler, director of UW Access Technology and the DO-IT Center.

To read about AccessEngineering program as posted on College of Engineering website, follow this LINK, or visit the program’s website.

Lab members attend the Society of Women Engineers 2017 Conference

Dr. Steele HuskyADAPT, News, Presentation, Projects, Publications

Momona Yamagami and Karley Benoff attended the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) 2017 conference in Austin, TX. Momona presented on her work with assessing a flexible electrode for long-term electromyography measurements and placed among the top 10 finalists in the graduate research poster competition for SWE. Congratulations Momona!

Momona Yamagami presents her research during a poster session

 

Karley said that SWE 17 was an incredible experience filled with opportunities for professional growth and networking. Here are some of her impressions:

“My favorite guest talk was titled “TECHing While Women and with Disability” where five panelists shared their experiences navigating the engineering world with a disability and/or as an advocate for those with disabilities. Dr. Richard Ladner of the University or Washington CSE department (pictured with Karley below) was one of the panelists. His research on accessible technology, especially technology for the blind, deaf, deaf-blind, and hard-of-hearing, was truly inspiring. The panelists’ presentations provided a unique perspective for approaching user-centered design. I hope to use the lessons learned from the panelists, as well as from all of the SWE 17 attendees I met, to better inform the development of my orthosis project this year. By targeting accessibility and user-centered design, I aspire to develop a universal elbow-driven orthosis that will improve function for users with a wide variety of abilities.

The panelist idea is something HuskyADAPT wants to organize for its club members. Since I am an officer in the club, we are currently trying to plan such an event to better inform design teams and members alike about peoples’ experiences living with disabilities. By understanding what each individual needs, we can better design devices and technology to address what the user wants.”

Karley Benoff with one of the panelists Dr. Richard Ladner of the University or Washington CSE department

 

H Choi, KM Peters, M MacConnell, K Ly, E Eckert, KM Steele (2017) “Impact of ankle foot orthosis stiffness on Achilles tendon and gastrocnemius function during unimpaired gait.” Journal of Biomechanics

Dr. Steele JournalArticle, Orthoses, Publications , , , , ,

Journal article in Journal of Biomechanics:

How does the stiffness of an AFO impact the muscultendon dynamics of the gastrocnemius?

Abstract

Method combining ultrasound and musculoskeletal modeling to evaluate changes in muscle and tendon length.

Ankle foot orthoses (AFOs) are designed to improve gait for individuals with neuromuscular conditions and have also been used to reduce energy costs of walking for unimpaired individuals. AFOs influence joint motion and metabolic cost, but how they impact muscle function remains unclear. This study investigated the impact of different stiffness ankle foot orthoses (AFOs) on medial gastrocnemius muscle (MG) and Achilles tendon (AT) function during two different walking speeds. We performed gait analyses for eight unimpaired individuals. Each individual walked at slow and very slow speeds with a 3D printed AFO with no resistance (free hinge condition) and four levels of ankle dorsiflexion stiffness: 0.25 Nm / °, 1 Nm / °, 2 Nm / °, and 3.7 Nm / °. Motion capture, ultrasound, and musculoskeletal modeling were used to quantify MG and AT lengths with each AFO condition. Increasing AFO stiffness increased peak AFO dorsiflexion moment with decreased peak knee extension and peak ankle dorsiflexion angles. Overall musculotendon length and peak AT length decreased, while peak MG length increased with increasing AFO stiffness. Peak MG activity, length, and velocity significantly decreased with slower walking speed. This study provides experimental evidence of the impact of AFO stiffness and walking speed on joint kinematics and musculotendon function. These methods can provide insight to improve AFO designs and optimize musculotendon function for rehabilitation, performance, or other goals.