TS-002384 — Movement disorders in the United States are often diagnosed after the infant stage. However, early detection and intervention can result in better outcomes. Physical therapists and researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital developed the BabySure which detects abnormal movements early on. The device uses color tracking and a depth camera system to track movements in a 2-minute video, which is then compiled to generate a Motor Function Score to compare to typical age-matched peers for early identification or to monitor movement changes in children with known movement impairments.

TS-002380 — Limb-girdle muscular dystrophy (LGMD) is a group of disorders that causes weakness in the arms and legs with proximal muscles being the most affected. Currently, there is no standard of care established for LGMD. Physical therapist and researcher, Lindsay Alfano, PT, DPT, PCS, at Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s Center for Gene Therapy created a survey to further understand current diagnosis and patient care practices for LGMD. The survey is designed for families, patients, caregivers, and individuals to gauge the patient’s background and LGMD history (first diagnosis, more frequently seen healthcare providers, testing done, use of assistive devices, access to therapy, etc.). By understanding LGMD patient care through the patient’s perspective, the survey moves the healthcare field one step closer to establishing the best practices of care for LGMD.

TS-002172 — Current myometers on the market provide inconsistent results, reducing their reliability. Lindsay Alfano, PT, DPT, PCS at Nationwide Children’s Hospital proposed the creation of a new system called Smart Myometry to limit variability and to make strength testing more reliable.

TS-000596 — Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) is a severe neuromuscular disease and the leading genetic cause of infant mortality. Moreover, existing treatments suffer from notable floor and ceiling effects and also poorly discriminate improved motor performance in patients. To circumvent these challenges, researchers at Nationwide children’s have developed the Neuromuscular Gross Motor Outcome (GRO) worksheet. The GRO worksheet is a gross motor outcome measure designed to assess whole body strength, motor development and function for all levels of ability across the lifespan in those diagnosed with SMA. Hence, the GRO worksheet is the ideal outcome measure tool for SMA or similar conditions to answer the need to quantity gross motor ability across a wide age span.