Welcome to the Biomechanics and Movement Sciences Interdisciplinary Program
The mission of the Interdisciplinary Program in Biomechanics & Movement Science (BIOMS) is to advance the understanding of complex human systems through interaction of experts who cross traditional divisions of academic study. We strive to train outstanding researchers who will contribute to the advancement of health science through translational and interdisciplinary research. Research findings are disseminated through peer reviewed publications in high impact journals and presentations at national and international conferences. The BIOMS program comprises faculty from the Colleges of Arts & Sciences, Engineering, and Health Sciences who use an interdisciplinary approach to create a diverse educational and research environment.
What’s New in BIOMS
Biomechanics Day at the Neuromotor Behavior Lab
At the Neuromotor Behavior Lab at the University of Delaware, we study motor learning, which is the process people use to learn and remember new movement patterns. Studying motor learning is important because if we can understand how people learn new movements, we can better help rehabilitate patients who need to re-learn how to perform everyday movements such as walking and reaching after a neurologic injury, such as a stroke. Using advanced laboratory instruments, we can precisely measure numerous aspects of movement, to quantify the amount and rate of motor learning in various patient populations. Through our research, we can use these techniques to inform physical therapists of the best motor learning processes to provide the highest quality care to their patients. Principal Investigators: Dr. Darcy Reisman and Dr. Susanne Morton
UD athletics partner with researchers for concussion baseline testing
Faculty and student researchers in the department of Kinesiology and Applied Physiology have been working with the University of Delaware Intercollegiate Athletic Department to conduct concussion baseline testing and post-injury assessments. Data collected from the Blue Hen athletes helps the College of Health Sciences research team by improving concussion management through science and research techniques. And when a student athlete gets injured, the clinician, athletic trainer and team physician have the athlete’s individual baseline to compare and determine when it’s safe to return to play.
Changing autism’s definition to include movement problems
Anjana Bhat, associate professor in the University of Delaware’s Physical Therapy department, has been awarded an R01 grant through the NIH for the next three years. Bhat will look at a timely SPARK study dataset of 24,000 school-aged children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The goal of Bhat’s grant-funded research is to better understand motor problems in children with ASD – their prevalence and relationship to other problems in ASD. Bhat hopes to alter the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders definition of ASD, which includes social communication and repetitive behavior problems, but not motor problems. Bhat’s students run a movement study at STAR Campus with children with ASD. Xavier Luckett, joined by his little brother, works through exercises with them as part of the study.
Virtual Reality Balance Study at UD
The virtual reality balance study at the University of Delaware study looks at how children with and without cerebral palsy (CP) control their balance during walking. The researchers also examine whether their balance control can be improved through the application of a new treatment modality called stochastic resonance stimulation, a very low-intensity, barely perceptible stimulation technique.