How does gait and functional movement differ in older people who have fallen?

The University of Essex is opening its new School of Sport, Rehabilitation and Exercise Sciences on 1 August 2017, bringing together the outstanding research and educational expertise in sports and exercise science, physiotherapy and sports therapy from our School of Biological Sciences and our School of Health and Human Sciences. To mark this event we are offering a this studentship at the interface of sport/exercise science and physiotherapy.

Overview

Falls are a leading cause of injury and death in older adults and a financial burden upon health services. The purpose of this project is to understand the gait and functional movements of older people who have fallen using three-dimensional motion analysis. These data will be compared to our database of healthy (non-fallers) older adults which currently includes 158 participants all of whom have undertaken a three-dimensional analysis of their gait. The student will be expected to add to this database. The project will recruit people who have been referred to falls prevention services. The information gained from this first wave will be used to inform falls prevention training programmes.

Study Aims

The principal aim of this study is to understand the biomechanics of gait and functional movements of older people who fall and use these data to inform falls prevention training programmes. The student will be using a 12 camera three-dimensional motion analysis system synchronised to a force plate to capture the joint kinematics and kinetics of walking, obstacle avoidance, and turning gait.

Objectives

1) The gait and functional movements of older people who have fallen will be compared to those within our ‘healthy’ database.
2) We will also compare gait before and after the completion of falls prevention training to see what impact this has on a person’s gait and functional movement.
3) The results from both these studies may highlight changes in gait which can provide stronger evidence to inform the design of falls prevention training protocols.

The Student

The project will suit an applicant with a good science-based degree (have or expect to receive a minimum of UK 2:1 honours degree), in addition to a specific interest in rehabilitation, biomechanics, physiotherapy, sports therapy, or sports science. The student will develop a range of research and practical skills and will have the opportunity to work with leading experts in the field. The successful candidate will gain experience in state-of-the-art methodologies applied to clinical populations. This includes exposure to technologies to measure motion analysis. The research findings will address a significant gap in the evidence base. For informal discussions please contact the project supervisors: Dr Matthew Taylor ([Email Address Removed]) or Prof Jo Jackson ([Email Address Removed]).

Entry requirements and application procedures

The start date for this 3-year PhD studentship is 5th October 2017. The award will be to the value of £12,500 per annum plus UK/EU tuition fees. Applications should be submitted electronically by July 3, 2017. Interviews will be held on July 14 where candidates will also be able to see the university’s new facilities. See here for details of how to apply https://www.essex.ac.uk/pgapply/enter.aspx. Additionally applicants should include up to 500 words explaining why they have chosen a particular the project and submit this with their CV. Additional questions and queries about the application process can be addressed in the first instance to [Email Address Removed] or [Email Address Removed].