The physical therapy faculty are involved in both mechanistic and applied neurological research. Our research initiatives feature disparate patient populations such as traumatic head injury and congenital cerebellar dysfunction in children. Many of these initiatives are interdisciplinary projects that involve collaboration with institutions such as Walter Reed Medical Center and NIH.

General descriptions of our current neurology research projects are provided below:

• Predictive Neurophysiological Factors that Determine Return to Sport for the Post-Concussive Athlete: The return to sports participation following a concussion is often based on questionnaires or subjective criteria. We are investigating the utility of neurophysiological measures to determine the status of the post-concussive athlete.
  GW PT Investigators: Dr. Livingston
  Collaborators: GW Athletic Training Program; the Brain Injury and Sports Concussion (BISC) Institute of the University of Virginia
• Validation of Force Control as a Proxy Measure of Ataxia: Subjective methods of assessing ataxia have limitations that preclude their use in clinical trials. We are exploring the use of accuracy and variability during force control tasks as proxy measures of ataxia in children with cerebellar dysfunction. This study is being conducted in collaboration with NIH and COMSAR2.
  GW PT Investigators: Drs. Harris-Love and Maring
  Collaborators: Drs. Hahn, Brindle, Danoff, and DiProspero
  
• Characterizing Neurological Status in Solders with Mild Head Injury:
  Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of disability among US veterans. We are exploring using transcranial magnetic stimulation to characterize the neurological status of veterans with TBI and determine the optimal markers of neurological recovery.
  GW PT Investigators: Dr. Livingston
  Collaborators: Walter Reed Army Medical Center - Neurology Department; the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center
• Utility of the AcceleGlove to Characterize Reaching Tasks: The AcceleGlove may be adapted for use as a research tool to characterize elements of reaching such as trajectory, velocity, and accuracy. We are utilizing the MOCA laboratory to better understand the measurement capabilities of the AcceleGlove.
  GW PT Investigators: Drs. Harris-Love and Maring
  Collaborators: Drs. Hernandez-Rebollar, Hahn, and Vinopol
• Effectiveness of the AcceleGlove for Computer-Assisted Upper Extremity Training in Adults with stroke: Key components of an effective home exercise program include adherence, appropriate feedback, monitoring, ease of use, optimal intensity and volume, and mode of training. We are collaborating with the Institute for Disabilities Research and Training, Inc to adapt the AcceleGlove for upper-extremity home exercise programs for adults with acute and chronic stroke.
  GW PT Investigators: Drs. Harris-Love and Maring
  Collaborators: Drs. Hernandez-Rebollar, Hahn, and Vinopol