Great job to lab members Ben Shuman, Michael Rosenberg, Sasha Portnova, and Hwan Choi for presenting their work at this year’s American Society of Biomechanics this August. To view the program and read more about biomechanics research, click here.
Kat Steele wins the Young Scientist Award at ASB 40
Congratulations to Dr. Kat Steele for being named the Postdoctoral Young Scientist. Kat was awarded at the 40th anniversary of the American Society of Biomechanics conference in Raleigh, North Carolina, August 2-5, 2016. For more information, visit the ASB webpage HERE.
Perfect Pitch Competition – Gaurav places after presenting his research in 90 seconds
Gaurav Mukherjee participated and won the second position among the UWIN Fellows at the Perfect Pitch competition organized by the Washington Research Foundation funded institutes on Tuesday July 12, 2016
The Perfect Pitch Contest is an opportunity to develop the communication skills needed to explain your research question, the solution you are developing, and the potential impact of the project in a clear, concise, and compelling fashion. This skill is essential for any career path including academia, industry, and government. A smart pitch could help you get a job, win funding for a grant, persuade a collaborator to partner with you, or perhaps even fund your startup company.
The Perfect Pitch contest provides participants the opportunity to present a 90-second pitch and one slide related to their research.
H Choi, TL Wren, KM Steele (2016) “Gastrocnemius operating length with ankle foot orthoses in cerebral palsy.” Prosthetics & Orthotics International
Journal article in Prosthetics & Orthotics International:
How does the operating length of the gastrocnemius vary with different common AFOs in children with cerebral palsy?
Background: Many individuals with cerebral palsy wear ankle foot orthoses during daily life. Orthoses influence joint motion, but how they impact muscle remains unclear. In particular, the gastrocnemius is commonly stiff in cerebral palsy. Understanding whether orthoses stretch or shorten this muscle during daily life may inform orthosis design and rehabilitation.
Objectives: This study investigated the impact of different ankle foot orthoses on gastrocnemius operating length during walking in children with cerebral palsy.
Study design: Case series, within subject comparison of gastrocnemius operating length while walking barefoot and with two types of ankle foot orthoses.
Methods: We performed gait analyses for 11 children with cerebral palsy. Each child was fit with two types of orthoses: a dynamic ankle foot orthosis (Cascade dynamic ankle foot orthosis) and an adjustable dynamic response ankle foot orthosis (Ultraflex ankle foot orthosis). Musculoskeletal modeling was used to quantify gastrocnemius musculotendon operating length and velocity with each orthosis.
Results: Walking with ankle foot orthoses could stretch the gastrocnemius more than barefoot walking for some individuals; however, there was significant variability between participants and orthoses. At least one type of orthosis stretched the gastrocnemius during walking for 4/6 and 3/5 of the Gross Motor Functional Classification System Level I and III participants, respectively. AFOs also reduced peak gastrocnemius lengthening velocity compared to barefoot walking for some participants, with greater reductions among the Gross Motor Functional Classification System Level III participants. Changes in gastrocnemius operating length and lengthening velocity were related to changes in ankle and knee kinematics during gait.
Conclusion: Ankle foot orthoses impact gastrocnemius operating length during walking and, with proper design, may assist with stretching tight muscles in daily life.
Clinical relevance: Determining whether ankle foot orthoses stretch tight muscles can inform future orthotic design and potentially provide a platform for integrating therapy into daily life. However, stretching tight muscles must be balanced with other goals of orthoses such as improving gait and preventing bone deformities.
Exciting Lab Employment Opportunity – Software Engineer
The Ability and Innovation Lab is excited to announce a job opportunity for a Software Engineer. The position begins upon hire and is expected to run through August of 2017.
The part-time position includes developing research prototypes and debugging existing complex software programs, evaluating the efficacy of new techniques and tools through case studies and user experiences, support fellow colleagues through writing tutorials and mentoring students, and preparing documentation and technical papers.
If you would like to join our multidisciplinary team, and would like to apply or learn more about this position, click here.