Translation Of Abdominal Functional Electrical Stimulation From A Research Tool To Clinical Practice
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$318,768.00
Summary
People with a spinal cord injury to the neck are often unable to move their arms and legs, a condition known as tetraplegia. Tetraplegics are also unable to use their abdominal muscles, reducing breathing and bowel function. This project will use electrical pulses to make their abdominal muscles contract, improving breathing and bowel function. The results will be used to develop a program that can be used in all hospitals, reducing illness in tetraplegia and saving the health service money.
How Neural Impairment Affects Respiratory Motor Function In Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease And Healthy Ageing
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$762,797.00
Summary
With chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and ageing, respiratory muscles are weak and the mechanics of the chest and lungs are altered. Our proposal will examine the contribution of impaired neural control to muscle weakness with the aim to identify new targets for therapy to reduce respiratory morbidity in ageing and patients with COPD.
Non-invasive Methods Of Measuring Work Of Breathing In Children
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$41,267.00
Summary
Sleep-disordered breathing such as obstructive sleep apnoea, is currently diagnosed if a child stops breathing more than once per hour. For children with asthma or cystic fibrosis, who may not stop breathing during the night, how hard their breathing muscles work can have a significant impact on their health. A non-invasive method of measuring respiratory effort, and incorporating this measurement into how sleep-disordered breathing is diagnosed, can revolutionize how sleep-disordered breathing ....Sleep-disordered breathing such as obstructive sleep apnoea, is currently diagnosed if a child stops breathing more than once per hour. For children with asthma or cystic fibrosis, who may not stop breathing during the night, how hard their breathing muscles work can have a significant impact on their health. A non-invasive method of measuring respiratory effort, and incorporating this measurement into how sleep-disordered breathing is diagnosed, can revolutionize how sleep-disordered breathing in children are managed world-wide.Read moreRead less
Central, Reflex And Mechanical Factors In The Control Of Human Breathing Muscles.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$497,968.00
Summary
We will study the neural output to human inspiratory muscles and how it is related to mechanical effectiveness for breathing and then how this relationship can change with respiratory disorders such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and obstructive sleep apnoea. We will also examine the spinal reflex connections of human breathing muscles in people with spinal cord injury. This work promises new understanding of the basic control of respiration and how it changes with disease.
Physiology And Pathophysiology Of Trunk Control Mechanisms
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$168,958.00
Summary
The overall aim of this series of experiments is to understand how the spine is controlled and how this changes in disease. Altered control has been identified in people with low back pain, yet we still know very little about the normal mechanisms for protection and support of the spine. Back pain is a common affliction that affects about 5% of Australians each year and is the most common and expensive work-related injury in western society. An understanding of normal control and the mechanism o ....The overall aim of this series of experiments is to understand how the spine is controlled and how this changes in disease. Altered control has been identified in people with low back pain, yet we still know very little about the normal mechanisms for protection and support of the spine. Back pain is a common affliction that affects about 5% of Australians each year and is the most common and expensive work-related injury in western society. An understanding of normal control and the mechanism of dysfunction is critical for identification of risk factors and development of strategies for rehabilitation and prevention. The experiments are divided into two series. The first series addresses normal spinal control. The questions to be asked deal with how the brain copes with the challenge of using trunk muscles for breathing and spinal control at the same time, how the activity of the trunk muscles is affected by input from sensory receptors in the joints, ligaments and muscles of the spine, and whether intra-abdominal pressure can support the trunk. The second series deals with clinical populations. The first aim is to identify whether people with respiratory diseases use trunk muscles for spinal control and breathing at the same time. If they cannot, we predict that they will be more prone to low back pain. We will test this in a large study of incidence of low back pain in people with and without respiratory disease. The second study will investigate the pelvic floor muscles which are important for continence and assist with spinal control. We will investigate whether people with incontinence have poor spinal control and whether this leads to back pain. The final experiment will identify whether people with low back pain interpret sensory information from the spine differently. By answering these questions we hope to intervene in the enormous personal, social and economic consequences of LBP which affects between 60-90% of the population at some stage in their life.Read moreRead less
The Role Of Lung Volume In The Pathogenesis And Treatment Of Obstructive Sleep Apnea.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$337,691.00
Summary
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common disorder of repetitive upper airway collapse during sleep. Reducing the volume of air in the lungs increases airway collapsibility. Lung volume is therefore likely important in OSA but has not been investigated thoroughly. Also, whether raising lung volume during sleep can be used to treat OSA is unknown. The aim of this grant is therefore to investigate the role, and therapeutic potential, of lung volume in OSA.
My work investigates the neural output to human inspiratory muscles and how it is related to mechanical effectiveness for breathing. The aim is to discover how this relationship can change with respiratory disorders such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and obstructive sleep apnoea. I also examine the changes in breathing muscle control in people with spinal cord injury. This work promises new understanding of the basic control of respiration and how it changes with disease.
Control Of Human Inspiratory Muscles In Health And Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$396,699.00
Summary
This project will study how human inspiratory muscles that 'pump' air into the lungs and upper airway 'dilator' muscles are controlled in normal healthy subjects and subjects with respiratory disorders such as obstructive sleep apnoea. We will study (i) the output to the inspiratory muscles, (ii) the interation of automatic and voluntary control of breathing, and (iii) reflex connections of human pump and dilator muscles. This work promises new understanding of basic and patho-physiology.