Taylor Group / Laboratory for Movement BiomechanicsOpen OpportunitiesParkinson’s disease is one of the most common neurodegenerative movement disorders affecting over 10 million people worldwide. Symptoms like impaired gait and postural instability can cause falls and highly impair patients’ mobility. The consequences of falls include fractures, hospital admissions, loss of independence, fear of falls, social isolation and early mortality. Falls are cited as one of the worst aspects of PD and unfortunately few efficacious interventions are available. - Engineering and Technology, Medical and Health Sciences
- Master Thesis, Semester Project
| Accurate non-invasive assessment modalities that incorporate both scapular motion and its morphology are currently unavailable, presenting a clear need for sustainable clinical application. To address this need, the Laboratory for Movement Biomechanics (LMB) utilizes a unique optical 4D scanning system (SLOT) to estimate the underlying anatomical structures using non-invasive structured light to produce high-quality images of the human skin surface, both statically and dynamically. By utilizing the clear cutaneous surface contours surrounding the scapula, the application of this technology to the shoulder joint could allow a novel non-invasive and dynamic approach for estimating scapular kinematics that overcomes the challenges associated with soft-tissue artifacts. The key challenge in the development of this approach is the precise identification and tracking of relevant scapula landmarks, as well as soft tissue artifacts, all of which are expected to affect the accuracy of the SLOT-measured kinematics. - Engineering and Technology, Information, Computing and Communication Sciences
- Master Thesis
| Parkinson's disease is a prevalent neurodegenerative condition in individuals over 60 years old. It results from impaired dopaminergic cells in the basal ganglia, leading to gait disturbances and reduced independence. While treatment options like dopamine replacement therapies and Deep-Brain Stimulation (DBS) exist, not all patients benefit from DBS. The lack of reliable biomarkers hampers understanding of surgical outcomes. A new DBS device enables wireless recording of subcortical brain activity, offering novel insights into Parkinson's subcortical activity. To explore personalized therapies, this study will measure the gait performance, neuro-activities like deep brain activity as well as electroencephalography (EEG) during walking in Parkinson's patients. Combining cortical (EEG) and subcortical (DBS) recordings aim to investigate comprehensive brain activity during pathological gait. - Information, Computing and Communication Sciences, Medical and Health Sciences
- Collaboration, Internship, Lab Practice, Master Thesis, Semester Project
| Everyone sits. We spend more time seated than sleeping or walking, and today's human behavior shows this trend is growing. Moovtech technology aims to help recover from sedentary back pain as well as strengthen core and spinal muscles to prevent future health issues. The Moovlab technology (Moovtech) and the revolutionary PVOT dynamic motion chair show high potential for improving people's lives and health, as well as potentially stimulating brain activity and work productivity. Additionally, sitting on a PVOT chair during work hours (home office or corporate setting) has the potential to prevent chronic pains in the long term. The motion initiated by Moovtech simulates pelvic movement when walking. The aim of this internship is to equip this innovative office chair with sensor technology to analyze the sitting behavior and usage of this novel chair. This work will serve as the foundation for planning a larger study and understanding the expected data outcomes. - Engineering and Technology, Medical and Health Sciences
- Internship
| Currently, individuals at risk of falling are identified through clinic- and lab-based assessment of gait and movement function. These tests evaluate changes in motor skills in a steady environment free of disturbances, while most falls occur during real life environments with disturbances such as obstacles and uneven walking surfaces, thus they are not precise enough for the quantification of fall risk. A sensitive marker for fall risk can therefore be identified through assessing walking behavior in real-life. - Biomechanical Engineering, Clinical Sciences, Human Movement and Sports Science, Rehabilitation Engineering
- ETH Zurich (ETHZ), Internship, Master Thesis, Semester Project
| Current approaches available to mitigate fall risk in older adults have prejudiced emphasis on a) protective equipment such as walking aids, footwear etc., b) environmental modification b) physical therapy and exercise programs. Despite the efforts, the world’s population is ageing and falling in older adults are on the rise. As such, development of more effective interventions for reducing fall risk is a global research priority. Our team is working on a new approach based on auditory noise stimulation for inducing improvement in balance during walking and ultimately to reduce fall-risk in older adults. - Biomedical Engineering, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Human Movement and Sports Science, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
- Internship, Master Thesis, Semester Project
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