Research Overview

The Department of Physical Therapy conducts clinical and scientific research that enhances the well-being and quality of life of humans by focusing on mechanisms for improving health. There is a developing research agenda within the department that links to collaborators both within the School of Health and Environment and in the community.

Graduate students in Physical Therapy contribute to the Department’s research agenda through participation in research courses and group-based research projects. Undergraduate Exercise Physiology students are introduced to research in required statistics and methodology courses and have opportunities to participate with faculty during their Independent Study in their senior year.

• Balance and Fall Prevention in the Elderly
• Differences and EMG and perceived difficulty of using different computer mice by the elderly
• Predictors of risk for ACL injury in female adolescent basketball players
• Kinematic analysis of jumping mechanics of adolescent female players
• Incidence of muscle injuries in middle aged females participating in strength training
• Effects of music on pediatric exercise
• Reliability of Peabody Developmental Motor Scales
• Leaning Centered Teaching
• Reliability and validity of tests and measurements in orthopedic physical therapy
• Intervention strategies in the management of low back pain
• Collaboration with Center for Health and Disease Research
  • Soy Protein and Resistance Training: Impact on Sarcopenia, Muscle Strength, Functional Limitations and Disability in Community-Dwelling Elders
  • Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in College-Aged Population
  • Healthy Impressions: Exercise Interventions in Elementary School Children
  • New Recruits Police Officer Training Program
  • D’Youville Nursing Home Project
  • Physical Activity and Health Among People with Disabilities
• Collaboration with Center for Public Health and Health Promotion
  • Qualitative study of parents of children who participate in therapeutic horseback riding
• Collaboration with Ironstone Farm for studies on therapeutic horseback riding
• Collaboration with Kerr Ergonomics Institute
  • Job Strain and Heart Rate Variability
  • Approximate Entropy of RR Interval and Vagal Modulation Time Series: An indication of exhausted systems?
  • Heart Rate and Blood Pressure Variability: Acute and Long Term Stressor Responses
• Collaboration with University of Massachusetts Medical Center, Division of Preventive Cardiology
  • Job Strain and Heart Rate Variability
  • Heart Rate Variability in Perimenopausal Women with Moderate to Severe Vasomotor Symptoms
• Collaboration with Northeast Rehabilitation Hospital
  • Clinical Reasoning and characteristics of expert practice in physical therapy in the area of patient and family teaching
  • Evaluation of Lifting Strategies used by health care workers
  • Predictors of Stress, Dissatisfaction and Burn Out Among Health Care Professionals in Rehabilitation Settings
• Collaboration with Northeastern University
  • Indicators of Heart Rate and Blood Pressure Variability in Patients with Systolic versus Diastolic Heart Failure during Positional Changes 

• The effects of aqua PT treatment on delayed onset muscle soreness in collegiate athletes
• Effects of counterforce bracing versus non-bracing on grip and wrist extensor strength in a healthy population
• Adherence in pediatric early intervention
• Ankle range of motion & incidence of injury in collegiate distance runners
• The effects of sub-maximal exercise on physical fitness in school-aged children
• The effect of personality type on running injuries in recreational runners
• The effect of a therapeutic horseback riding program on pulmonary function in children with developmental disabilities
• Interrater reliability of the Tinetti balance assessment tool: Expert vs. novice clinicians
• A comparison of student preferences using two forms of pedagogy - distance learning and traditional classroom based instruction
• A novel approach for the six-minute walk test: A simulation study
• The effects of aqua PT 3:1 treatment time on lumbar flexion and hamstring extensibility
• Determining the reliability and validity of a passive knee extension test
• Effects of the Aqua PT 3-in-1 therapy system plus stretching protocol versus a stretching protocol on hip flexor extensibility
• Computer mouse use: differences in actual and perceived exertion of computer users over the age of 55
• The influence of hip positioning on internal and external range of motion measurements