Biomedical Discussion Group: Dr. Ali Boolani Clarkson University, New York, USA

Friday, July 12, 2019 2:30 pm - 3:30 pm EDT (GMT -04:00)

Biomedical Discussion Group

Ali Boolani
Dr. Ali Boolani, Associate Professor, Clarkson University

Title: Feelings of energy and fatigue influence different aspects of gait and postural control

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Abstract:

Until recently, energy and fatigue were viewed on a bipolar continuum, however, the work by Boolani and colleagues (2018, 2018, 2019) distinguishes the two moods as two distinct yet overlapping moods. Boolani and colleagues (2018) are further able to distinguish between stable persisting mood traits and transient feelings of mental and physical energy and fatigue as eight separate constructs. Studies with clinical depression and anxiety have noted that patients with these mood disorders have distinct gait patterns compared to those who do not qualify for a diagnosis. While the influences of clinical mood presentations on gait and posture have been extensively studied, sub-clinical/non-clinical mood states and their influences on gait and postural control are less well understood. Further, the studies that have focused on energy and fatigue and their role on gait and postural control have examined the two moods on a bipolar continuum rather than as two distinct unipolar moods. Additionally, the current work on energy and fatigue has primarily focused on fatiguing a certain muscle or muscle groups and then examining its influence on gait and postural control rather than examining the influence of subjective perceptions of energy and fatigue on gait and postural control. Our studies work on distinguishing the influence of perceptions of mental and physical energy and fatigue states and their influence on gait and postural control. Our research suggests that when examining the influences of these mood states on gait and postural control one must examine these moods separately.

Bio:

Dr. Ali Boolani is an associate professor at Clarkson University. He received his PhD in Applied Physiology at Oklahoma State University and completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Georgia in Exercise Psychology. Ali’s work focuses on objective and subjective measurements of energy and fatigue, the influence of energy and fatigue on human movement, and interventions to improve feelings of energy and fatigue. His most recently published work showed that energy and fatigue are physiologically two distinct moods with current work displaying that energy and fatigue distinctly influence human movement.
His research interests include applied physiology of the human motor system, signal processing of intramuscular and surface electromyography and modeling of spinal neural networks.

Keywords:  applied physiology, fatique, clinical depression, anxiety, gait, postural control, clinical mood presentations

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