Area of research
Surgery · Complementary and Manual Therapy
Research interest
Research topics from publications: Sexual dimorphisms in three-dimensional masticatory muscle attachment morphometry regulates temporomandibular joint mechanics; Explainable deep learning and biomechanical modeling for TMJ disorder morphological risk factors; Racial differences in running and landing measures associated with injury risk vary by sex. Representative work: Clarifying multifactorial musculoskeletal disorder etiologies supports risk analysis, development of targeted prevention, and treatment modalities. Deep learning enables comprehensive risk factor identification through systematic analyses of disease data sets but does not provide sufficient context for mechanistic understanding, limiting clinical applicability for etiological investigations. Conversely, multiscale biomechanical modeling can evaluate mechanistic etiology within the relevant biomechanical and physiological context. We propose a hybrid approach combining 3D explainable deep learning and multiscale biomechanical modeling; we applied this approach to investigate temporomandibular It is unknown whether running and landing mechanics differ between racial groups despite injury disparities between African Americans (AA) and white Americans (WA). This study aimed to identify potential racial differences in running and landing mechanics and understand whether anthropometric, strength, and health status factors contribute to these differences. Venous blood samples, anthropometry, lower-extremity strength, and health status assessments were collected (n = 84, 18-30y). Three-dimensional motion capture and force plate data were recorded during 7 running and 7 drop vertical jump trials. Racial effects were determined, and regression models evaluated explanatory factors. AA fema