Paul Kline, P.T., D.P.T., Ph.D., assistant professor in the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Health Professions Department of Physical Therapy, has been awarded a grant from the 2024 VCU Quest Fund. 

The fund, administered by VCU’s Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation, addresses major societal challenges through the support of transdisciplinary pilot and existing projects led by university researchers.

Titled “The Role of Visual Attention and Environmental Complexity in Real-World Mobility for People with Lower Limb Amputation,” the project will assess walking speed and eye movements when multi-tasking and walking in high and low complexity environments and compare these metrics between people with and without lower limb amputation. 

Kline says the goal is to determine how people with lower limb amputation walk and where they focus their vision when they have to do two things at once in various environments. 

“Real-world walking requires thinking and moving simultaneously, which we refer to as cognitive-motor dual-tasking,” said Kline. “When using a prosthesis to walk, people with lower limb amputation are often more reliant on visual information to know where the prosthetic leg is placed with each step. This strategy may not be optimal when walking in more dynamic environments as people with amputation often report difficulty walking in places with crowds, changing terrain, and visually-demanding features.”

The results of the study will inform the next phase of projects to develop ways to train more efficient eye movements in those with lower limb amputation as a means to improve their mobility in real-world settings.

Read more about the 2024 VCU Quest Fund recipients on VCU News.