High-Tech and Healthy

With the number of adults over the age of 65 expected to double within the next 15 years, the importance of healthy aging continues to grow. One key factor in aging healthily is functional mobility and physical activity. Roger James, Ph.D., FACSM, director for the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) Center for Rehabilitation Research (CRR) and professor in the School of Health Professions, believes the work being conducted at the CRR can give insight into how people can stay active as they get older.

“We have three parts to our mission,” James said. “One is research. The second is education in research, so we have students we train in research. The third is that we do clinical assessment services for the community.”

James explained that much of the Center for Rehabilitation Research’s research can be applied to helping people live and age healthier.

“Many of the disorders we study are obviously related to aging,” James said. “We conduct research on a variety of different disorders and health conditions, including pain, which may be low back pain, nerve-related disorders and bone and joint disorders, like osteoarthritis. One of the purposes of our research is to better understand these conditions, so that we can help prevent them or help people live better lives.”

The technology at the Center for Rehabilitation Research gives James and his team unprecedented insight into the body and where problems exist in a person’s physical activity.

“The Clinical Biomechanics lab, or gait lab, includes cameras and sensors in the floor that measure forces under a person’s feet,” James said. “We also have sensors that measure a person’s muscle activity. Collectively, all of these different types of instruments allow us to measure the body as they’re walking and be able to better determine mobility and whether their health condition is impairing their functional mobility.”

The Center for Rehabilitation Research is unique because its research focuses on functional mobility and medical conditions that inhibit it, as well as offer these services to the public.

“All biomechanics labs will have a specific focus, such as sports medicine, but they may have similar technologies,” James said. “We are the only gait lab in West Texas that I know of that will do clinical assessments for the community.”

Individuals experiencing pain or mobility issues can contact their doctor or the Center for Rehabilitation Research to work with experts in determining the cause of their problem. From there, a treatment or therapy plan can be implemented to improve the client’s quality of life.

“Community members are referred by physicians and physical therapists,” James said. “In the aging population, those undergoing a knee-joint replacement or suffering severe osteoarthritis, balance or vestibular disorders, low back pain or nerve pain and all kinds of disorders may be referred to us for assessment. A community member can even call without a referral if they have an issue they need assessed.”

While technology like that in the Center for Rehabilitation Research’s Clinical Biomechanics Lab can identify issues causing mobility problems, James explained it’s important to understand changes and risks associated with aging and remaining proactive to avoid injury.

“One factor is that as we get older, we know we slow down,” James said. “We also experience injuries and health conditions differently. We just need to be aware that as we get older, we can’t do the things we did when we were young. Keep in mind the physical factors that can restrict what we do. But, that doesn’t mean we have to stop, we just have to be mindful of better ways to do things.”