Research 2009 - 2011
Sports Medicine & Clinical Orthopaedics
Jason Peeler, CAT(C), Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Kinesiology and Applied Health
Working in collaboration with clinicians at Pan Am Clinic, Dr. Peeler is investigating the accuracy of hands on injury assessment techniques that are used by sports medicine professionals when evaluating knee injuries. “Currently, there is no universally accepted or standardized method of knee injury assessment, and because of this the precision of injury assessment can vary greatly among clinicians, and be influenced by a host of factors such as experience, education and training.”As a result, advanced diagnostics such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is often used as the gold standard to provide a definitive diagnosis of the injury. In a quest to enhance the precision of hands on assessments, Dr. Peeler and his colleagues are creating a standardized method of knee injury assessment. This Standardized Orthopaedic Assessment Protocol(SOAP) will serve as a guide for clinicians when assessing a serious knee injury, and could enhance the referral process by providing more complete and timely information to specialists. As well, it could possibly decrease the reliance on expensive diagnostic techniques such as MRI.
In a related research project, Dr. Peeler is working on the development of an assessment protocol that can be used by health professionals to identify underlying musculoskeletal conditions that could predispose a child to injury during participation in competitive sport. Dr. Peeler anticipates that this functional movement assessment protocol could serve as an important adjunct to the typical pre-participation physical examination that would normally be completed by a child’s family physician prior to their participation in competitive sport.