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What Is The Function Of The Tibialis Posterior Muscle And Tendon During Walking And How Does It Affect Disorders Of The Foot
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$110,235.00
Summary
The tibialis posterior (TP) muscle is important for foot function and is often implicated in foot and ankle problems. We will investigate the function of TP during gait with specific reference to foot posture. In particular we will examine the mechanical function of the muscle and tendon in different foot postures and commonly used treatment modalities such as (footwear and foot orthoses).
Adaptation Of Muscle To Eccentric Exercise And Its Clinical Applications 194272
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$196,410.00
Summary
Work in this laboratory has concentrated on Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS), the soreness felt for several days after unaccustomed exercise. This is particularly so when the exercise involves stretching of active muscle, called eccentric exercise, at longer muscle lengths. DOMS is due to microscopic muscle damage. A rapid training effect, leading to reduced soreness from a subsequent bout of similar exercise, has been identified by us as due to a specific structural adaptation. This results ....Work in this laboratory has concentrated on Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS), the soreness felt for several days after unaccustomed exercise. This is particularly so when the exercise involves stretching of active muscle, called eccentric exercise, at longer muscle lengths. DOMS is due to microscopic muscle damage. A rapid training effect, leading to reduced soreness from a subsequent bout of similar exercise, has been identified by us as due to a specific structural adaptation. This results in the optimum length for tension generation moving to longer muscle length so that the muscle is less likely to be damaged during subsequent stretches. Hypothesizing that gross muscle tears arise from the microscopic damage, we have begun investigating whether eccentric exercise training can prevent hamstring muscle injuries. We have shown that eccentric exercise shifts the optimum length for contraction in human hamstring muscles. We are now examining athletes with past injuries, known to be likely to re-injure. Other experiments are designed to show that sports that cause injury do indeed include eccentric exercise of the hamstring muscles. We are also investigating the effectiveness of eccentric exercise in treating apparently normal children who compulsively walk on their toes. We have built monitoring equipment and are monitoring both conventional and exercise based treatments designed to shift muscle optimum length to longer lengths to allow the children to place their heels on the ground. Finally, most muscles contain different fibre types, distinguished mainly by their speed of contraction. It has been suggested that they are not all uniformly susceptible to damage from eccentric exercise, a result not predicted by our theory. However, we hypothesize that secondary factors, particularly the length for generating optimum tension, may be responsible for these differences. We plan to test this idea by measuring properties of different types of motor units.Read moreRead less
A Randomised Controlled Trial Of Antivenom For Red-bellied Black Snake Envenoming
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$464,444.00
Summary
Muscle damage can result from snake bite, is irreversible and there is no specific treatment except antivenom. Red-bellied black snake bite provides a unique opportunity to study antivenom use in muscle damage in snake bite because this snake occurs across large population areas of NSW and Queensland. The study will determine if antivenom is effective and safe in red bellied black snake bite and whether it is therefore useful for other important snakes that cause muscle damage worldwide.
How Does The Trunk Influence Intersegmental Coordination During Functional Tasks In Parkinson’s Disease: A Risk Factor For Falls?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$328,032.00
Summary
Differences in trunk motion during dynamic tasks may provide a mechanism of falling in Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients. However, objective measures are needed to discern if these differences stem from deficits in motor programming or increased trunk stiffness. This information is critical for developing effective interventions. This project will incorporate innovative techniques to examine how the trunk muscles coordinate movement and control balance during walking in PD.
Can Exercise Early After Spinal Cord Injury Prevent Deterioration Of Muscle And Bone?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$775,049.00
Summary
Spinal cord injury leads to a profound deterioration of the muscles and bones in the paralysed limbs. This project will examine the effects of exercising the paralysed limbs as early as possible after injury to prevent muscle and bone loss rather than restoring the tissues once changes have occurred. The time course and mechanisms underlying the microstructural decay of bone over the first year after injury will also be examined to provide a basis for determining fracture risk in this group.
Activation Transcription Factor-4: Novel Regulator Of Smooth Muscle Cell Repair And Intimal Thickening Through Tenascin C
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$228,313.00
Summary
CVD represents the most important cause of morbidity and mortality in the world, accounting for 35% of all deaths in Australia. Smooth muscle cell growth accounts for a range of vascular proliferative disorders. This project focuses on understanding the role of ATF-4 as a new key regulator of SMC proliferation and intimal thickening in injured vessels. Moreover, strategies targeting ATF-4 will facilitate future therapeutic strategies to control intimal thickening in patients with vascular diseas ....CVD represents the most important cause of morbidity and mortality in the world, accounting for 35% of all deaths in Australia. Smooth muscle cell growth accounts for a range of vascular proliferative disorders. This project focuses on understanding the role of ATF-4 as a new key regulator of SMC proliferation and intimal thickening in injured vessels. Moreover, strategies targeting ATF-4 will facilitate future therapeutic strategies to control intimal thickening in patients with vascular disease.Read moreRead less
Changes In Motor Control And Kinaesthetic Sensations After Eccentric Exercise.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$287,250.00
Summary
It is a well-known observation that after a period of intense exercise we are unsteady on our feet and are clumsy when attempting to make precision movements. Such impressions are particularly marked after eccentric exercise, during which the contracting muscles are forcibly lengthened. Activities such as walking downhill, skiing and horse riding involve eccentric exercise. The debilitating consequences of this kind of exercise are attributed, not just to the post-exercise effects of fatigue, bu ....It is a well-known observation that after a period of intense exercise we are unsteady on our feet and are clumsy when attempting to make precision movements. Such impressions are particularly marked after eccentric exercise, during which the contracting muscles are forcibly lengthened. Activities such as walking downhill, skiing and horse riding involve eccentric exercise. The debilitating consequences of this kind of exercise are attributed, not just to the post-exercise effects of fatigue, but to loss of muscle force from damage to fibres. Eccentric exercise also leads to longer term effects. The breakdown of the damaged tissue leads to sensations of stiffness and soreness the next day. This application proposes experiments aimed at studying a number of effects of eccentric exercise on motor control, and establishing the muscle, spinal and brain levels at which they occur. Three studies are planned. In the first, the question will be explored whether we are less able to use the motor areas of our brains to execute voluntary contractions after exercise. So fatigue is not just a matter of exhausted muscles but perhaps also exhausted brains. We will use brain and spinal cord stimulation to explore this point. Then we plan to listen to single motor units, the basic elements of muscle control, to try to understand the mechanism by which the brain minimises the debilitating effects of fatigue. Finally we want to examine subjects' ability to locate their limbs in space as a means of providing a basis for the clumsiness we experience after intense exercise. These are all important issues relevant to clinical medicine and rehabilitation as well as sports science and exercise.Read moreRead less