Sunday, June 4, 2023
OANDP-L
  • Login
No Result
View All Result
The O&P EDGE
  • PECOS
  • Magazine
    • Subscription
    • Current Issue
    • Issue Archive
    • News Archive
    • Product & Service Directory
    • Advertising Information
    • EDGE Flipbooks
  • O&P Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
  • EDGE Advantage
  • O&P Facilities
  • Resources
    • Product & Service Directory
    • Calendar
    • Contact
    • About Us
    • O&P Library
    • The Guide
    • Custom Publications
    • Advertising Information
    • EDGE Direct
    • Amplitude Media Group
  • PECOS
  • Magazine
    • Subscription
    • Current Issue
    • Issue Archive
    • News Archive
    • Product & Service Directory
    • Advertising Information
    • EDGE Flipbooks
  • O&P Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
  • EDGE Advantage
  • O&P Facilities
  • Resources
    • Product & Service Directory
    • Calendar
    • Contact
    • About Us
    • O&P Library
    • The Guide
    • Custom Publications
    • Advertising Information
    • EDGE Direct
    • Amplitude Media Group
No Result
View All Result
The O&P EDGE Magazine
No Result
View All Result
Home News

One Researcher’s Passion for Solving Patient Problems

by Pam Martin
April 1, 2011
in News
0
SHARES
17
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

If I have a thousand ideas and only one turns out to be good, I am satisfied.

-Alfred Nobel, as quoted by Ammanath Peethambaran, MS, CO, FAAOP, University of Michigan Orthotics & Prosthetics Center researcher.

The current fabrication method for a custom TLSO is a challenge, according to Ammanath Peethambaran, MS, CO, FAAOP, University of Michigan Orthotics & Prosthetics Center (UMPOC), a division of the University of Michigan Health System Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Ann Arbor, because it requires measuring and casting the patient’s torso while he or she is lying in a trauma unit. The orthotist must maintain spinal stability while moving the patient into supine and prone positions, he says, and these motions increase the risk of further patient injury and discomfort. Because of these hazards, the options of either casting a mold or taking measurements and then outsourcing fabrication to a manufacturer didn’t satisfy Peethambaran. So the researcher and committee chairman looked for another option.

“The purpose of my study is to test a novel method of using a pre-existing computed tomography [CT] scan of the patient’s torso to create a custom…TLSO,” he explains. The plan is feasible since many patients undergo a CT scan soon after injury as a routine aspect of care, he says. Enhancements over current procedures include the generation of a mathematical model for a precise fit, as well as reductions in waiting time, cost, and environmental impact. “Using the CT scan with our methodology, we should be able to eliminate the need for a plaster mold,” he notes. “If successful, this study can lead to similar advances in creating other custom orthotic and prosthetic devices through CT scans.”

Peethambaran has spearheaded many projects aimed at untangling patient problems, including the development of a bivalve design cranial remolding helmet that adjusts to a baby’s growth. The development of the helmet also uses CT scan data.

Research collaboration is commonplace at U-M and leads to positive outcomes, according to Peethambaran. “I work with different departments like radiology, neuromechanics lab, vestibular lab, engineering…[and] orthopedics,” he says, in addition to the Department of Kinesiology and others. “Each investigator has [his or her] role,” he says, adding that “taking advantage of [each researcher’s] expertise is key [to a study’s] success.” But he cautions those considering research as a career not to attempt it “unless they are committed to the task” because research is “not an eight-to-five job.” He warns of long hours logged in the evenings and on weekends in the pursuit of answers. He argues that the O&P field “is still a craft and not a science,” and explains that in order to move toward the latter, “orthotic design and development must undergo a paradigm shift away from trial and error, toward a set of scientific principles.” He says he is “working toward that goal.” His patients, no doubt, are thankful.

Pam Martin can be reached at

Editor’s note: To read more about the collaborative efforts among researchers, practitioners, and students at universities that offer O&P educational programs and house clinical care facilities, watch for our May feature “Collaborative Dynamos: When the Sum Makes All the Parts Greater.”

Related posts:

  1. The Changing Landscape: Manufacturers Enter the US Clinical Care Market
  2. Dynamic Collaborations: When the Sum Makes All the Parts Greater
  3. Improving Fit + Function for the Hip Disarticulation Patient
  4. Partnering With Therapists: Improving Patient Access and Outcomes Through Collaboration
Tags: NULL
Previous Post

Amputee Begins Trek Across Germany

Next Post

Ryerson Students Invent Brain-Controlled Prosthetic Arm

Next Post

Ryerson Students Invent Brain-Controlled Prosthetic Arm

  • VIEW CURRENT ISSUE
  • SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE

RECENT NEWS

News

TMR at Amputation Lessens Neuroma Formation

by The O&P EDGE
May 25, 2023

While targeted muscle reinnervation (TMR) is an effective technique for the prevention and management of phantom limb pain and residual...

Read more

SPS Employees Mark Anniversaries

Prosthetic Ankle Design Increased Foot Clearance, May Decrease Fall Risk

CAF Gala Raises Over $675,000

Get unlimited access!

Join EDGE ADVANTAGE and unlock The O&P EDGE's vast library of archived content.
SUBSCRIBE TODAY

O&P JOBS

Pacific

Hanger Clinic is Hiring in California!

Eastern

Immediate opening for a CPO at Hanger Clinic Dayton, Ohio!

Eastern

Director of Prosthetics and Orthotic Department

 

© 2021 The O&P EDGE

  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • EDGE Advantage
  • OANDP-L
  • Subscribe

CONTACT US

866-613-0257

[email protected]

201 E. 4th St
Loveland, CO 80537

The most important industry news and events delivered directly to your inbox every week.

No Result
View All Result
  • PECOS
  • MAGAZINE
    • SUBSCRIBE
    • CURRENT ISSUE
    • ISSUE ARCHIVE
    • NEWS ARCHIVE
    • PRODUCTS & SERVICES DIRECTORY
    • ADVERTISING INFORMATION
  • O&P JOBS
    • FIND A JOB
    • POST A JOB
  • EDGE ADVANTAGE
  • FACILITES
  • RESOURCES
    • PRODUCTS & SERVICES DIRECTORY
    • CALENDAR
    • CONTACT
    • ABOUT US
    • O&P LIBRARY
    • THE GUIDE
    • CUSTOM PUBLICATIONS
    • ADVERTISING
    • EDGE DIRECT
    • AMPLITUDE
  • OANDP-L
  • LOGIN

© 2023The O&P EDGE

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
The O&P EDGE Magazine
 
Required 'Candidate' login to applying this job. Click here to logout And try again
 

Login to your account

  • Forgot Password? | Sign Up

Reset Password

  • Already have an account? Login

Enter the username or e-mail you used in your profile. A password reset link will be sent to you by email.

Signup to your Account

  • By clicking checkbox, you agree to our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy

    Already have an account? Login

Close
Are you sure want to unlock this post?
Unlock left : 0
Are you sure want to cancel subscription?
 

Account Activation

Before you can login, you must activate your account with the code sent to your email address. If you did not receive this email, please check your junk/spam folder. Click here to resend the activation email. If you entered an incorrect email address, you will need to re-register with the correct email address.