The Distinguished Lecture Series in Sports Medicine at Hope College will continue on Thursday, Nov. 3, at 7 p.m. in the Maas Center.
Dr. Riann Palmieri of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor will present "Arthrogenic Muscle Inhibition: Sources and Implications for Rehabilitation."
The public is invited. Admission is free.
Through arthrogenic muscle inhibition, or AMI, the body responds to damage to a joint such as the knee by limiting the movement of the muscles surrounding it, an attempt to protect the joint from further injury. As a result, the muscles become weaker through disuse.
By overcoming AMI, according to Palmieri, the muscular deterioration can be limited and the patient can begin rehabilitation sooner. A goal, she said, would not necessarily be to return an injured patient to activity faster, but to allow a return when healing is complete without neuromuscular deficiencies.
Palmieri is a Certified Athletic Trainer and the program director in athletic training at the University of Michigan. She has written and presented extensively on her research dealing with sports-related injuries and the therapeutic interventions health care professionals can use to best deal with them. She holds a Ph.D. in sports medicine from the University of Virginia.
The Distinguished Lecture Series in Sports Medicine, which features a variety of topics, is designed for health care professionals with an interest in physically active patients, and is intended for students, educators and clinicians alike. It is co-sponsored by Shoreline Orthopaedics, Orthopaedic Associates of Grand Rapids, GRSportsCenter and the college.
All lectures in the series begin at 7 p.m., and will be presented either at the college or at Mary Free Bed Hospital in Grand Rapids.
The Maas Center is located on Columbia Avenue at 11th Street.