Decreased white matter fractional anisotropy is associated with poorer functional motor skills following spinal cord injury: a pilot study.

Study Design: Prospective cross-sectional study OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to assess associations between white matter changes and functional motor markers including grip strength and prehension in the upper limb.

Setting: Single Center Imaging Study, in Vancouver Canada.

Methods: Diffusion tensor imaging produced FA (Fractional Anisotropy) maps of the brain for participants with SCI (n = 7) and controls (n = 6).

Cardiovascular Stress During Inpatient Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation.

Objectives: (1) To measure the amount of cardiovascular stress, self-reported physical activity, and accelerometry-measured physical activity by individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) during physical therapy (PT) and occupational therapy (OT); and (2) to investigate the relations between these measures.

Design: Observational study.

Setting: Two inpatient SCI rehabilitation centers.

Control of standing balance while using constructions stilts: comparison of expert and novice users.

Unlabelled: This study examined the control of standing balance while wearing construction stilts. Motion capture data were collected from nine expert stilt users and nine novices. Three standing conditions were analysed: ground, 60 cm stilts and an elevated platform.

Bilateral motor tasks involve more brain regions and higher neural activation than unilateral tasks: an fMRI study.

Movements that involve simultaneous coordination of muscles of the right and left lower limbs form a large part of our daily activities (e.g., standing, rising from a chair).

Effect of visual feedback on brain activation during motor tasks: an FMRI study.

This study examined the effect of visual feedback and force level on the neural mechanisms responsible for the performance of a motor task. We used a voxel-wise fMRI approach to determine the effect of visual feedback (with and without) during a grip force task at 35% and 70% of maximum voluntary contraction. Two areas (contralateral rostral premotor cortex and putamen) displayed an interaction between force and feedback conditions.

Pedometer accuracy in slow walking older adults.

The purpose of this study was to determine pedometer accuracy during slow overground walking in older adults (Mean age = 63.6 years). A total of 18 participants (6 males, 12 females) wore 5 different brands of pedometers over 3 pre-set cadences that elicited walking speeds between 0.

Locomotor strategies in response to altered lower limb segmental mechanical properties.

The present study sought to use stilt walking as a model to uncover modifications to gait dynamics caused by changes in lower limb anthropometrics. We examined 10 novice and 10 expert stilt walkers, each walking with and without stilts, to determine the specific adaptations brought about by experience. Three-dimensional kinematics and force platform data were used to calculate the intersegmental forces, net joint moments and moment powers at the ankle, knee and hip.

Aging effects on the control of grip force magnitude: an fMRI study.

Functional neuroimaging techniques have allowed for investigations into the mechanisms of age-related deterioration in motor control. This study used functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to investigate age related differences in the control of grip force magnitude. Using an event-related design, fMRI scans were completed on 13 older adults, and 13 gender matched younger adults, while using their dominant hand to squeeze a rubber bulb for 4s at 10%, 40% or 70% of their maximum voluntary contraction.

Intersegmental coordination while walking up inclined surfaces: age and ramp angle effects.

The lower-limb segment elevation angles during human locomotion have been shown to co-vary in a manner such that they approximate a plane when plotted against each other over a gait cycle. This relationship has been described as the Planar Co-Variation Law and has been shown to be consistent across various modes of locomotion on level ground. The goal of this study is to determine whether the Planar Co-Variation Law will hold in situations where the orientation of the walking surface is altered and if aging will have an effect on this intersegmental coordination during these locomotor tasks.

Adaptation to unilateral change in lower limb mechanical properties during human walking.

To produce successful and safe walking movements, the locomotor control system must have a detailed awareness of the mechanical properties of the lower limbs. Flexibility of this control comes from an ability to identify and accommodate any changes in limb mechanics by updating its internal representation of the lower limb. To explore the ability of the locomotor control system to tune its representation of the lower limb, eight participants performed three 5 min trials (PRE, WEIGHT and POST) of treadmill walking.