Senior research Associate
University of Nebraska at Omaha
As a biomechanist, my primary focus is on evaluating movement disorders in clinical populations through mechanical and mathematical analyses. My research predominantly revolves around investigating and improving gait and balance in elderly individuals, as well as those suffering from peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
In my capacity as a Senior Research Associate, I dedicate my efforts to enhancing the quality of life and functional abilities of individuals with movement impairments. My overarching goal is to develop innovative strategies and interventions to improve their quality of life and mobility. Drawing upon my expertise in biomechanics, biomedical engineering, and assistive device technologies, I approach the analysis of human movement from a unique perspective that complements existing research in the field. In this study, we aim to develop a novel controller for a robotic ankle exoskeleton designed to optimize assistance tailored to each individual. This optimization will be achieved using real-time physiological measures of muscle activation and muscular metabolic rate. The ultimate goal is to implement and evaluate this technology in clinical populations as part of future clinical trials.
Throughout my career, I have collaborated closely with co-investigators, such as Dr. Gonabadi, for over 10 years as an independent researcher. Additionally, I have contributed to various projects alongside Dr. Myers and Dr. Pipinos during my tenure as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Biomechanics Department of the University of Nebraska at Omaha. I am eager to collaborate with fellow researchers as we embark on this new direction in clinical research.
Contributions to Science
1. Determining mechanisms contributing to movement variability to enhance rehabilitation programs. I examined health-related problems during locomotion and functional outcomes of rehabilitation programs with respect to variability and coordination. Using dynamic systems theory, I investigated the role of shank muscle strength on gait performance differences between younger and older adults1. The result of this study was promising for physical therapists to design effective intervention programs for older adults. Later, in another analysis, we found that manipulation of therapeutic training parameters can promote more significant or lesser movement variability during a gait rehabilitation program. Variability directly relates to health status and physical function and can be used for evaluating intervention outcomes. We are continuing our studies to examine the efficacy of currently available treatments and developing new rehabilitation protocols based on the new evaluation tools.
2. Measuring functional outcomes using nonlinear tools: It is well established that healthy human movement contains an optimal level of variation. Pathology is indicative of movement patterns that are too repetitive or too unpredictable. There are numerous methods to examine the variation of movement. I have published several methods papers examining the proper use of these methods as applied to walking and balance data.
3. Mechanisms contributing to stability during walking: Identifying the functional ability of an individual to maintain stability during walking is critical for avoiding fall and proper assistive device prescription. There is a link between stability and falls where an ultimate lack of stability results in a fall. There is an extensive line of research in biomechanics to measure the stability of walking, during which most falls happen. However, there is currently no gold standard to quantify gait stability. Maintaining stability might be more challenging for a patient population and it may require greater energy expenditure. In my extensive research during my doctoral degree, I added to the knowledge of gait stability as to when or where each metric should be used and how to interpret the body responses to challenge perturbations.
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