Gina Bertocci, Ph.D., PE; Director, Injury Risk Assessment and Prevention Lab. Dr. Bertocci is a Professor in Bioengineering, Mechanical Engineering and Pediatrics, and is the Endowed Chair of Biomechanics. Dr. Bertocci's academic training is in Mechanical Engineering and Bioengineering. She completed her PhD in Bioengineering from the University of Pittsburgh in 1997. Her research has focused on injury biomechanics and rehabilitation biomechanics. Dr. Bertocci's injury biomechanics research has been in the fields of child abuse and wheelchair transportation safety. Before joining the University of Louisville, Dr. Bertocci was the Director of the RERC (Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center) on Wheelchair Transportation Safety at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Bertocci continues to be involved in wheelchair transportation research focusing on injury risk associated with wheelchair transport, public transportation accessibility, and describing wheelchair-related activities in public transportation. She is also a member of the ANSI/RESNA Committee on Wheelchairs and Transportation, and a designated expert for ISO Wheelchair Transportation Working Group. Dr. Bertocci's research in the area of child abuse has focused on determining the compatibility between injuries and stated causes using biomechanical principles and techniques. This work has utilized test dummies and computer simulation to investigate injury risk associated with common household falls that may be used as falsely stated scenarios in child abuse cases. Dr. Bertocci also conducts research in the area of canine biomechanics, working towards gaining an understanding of factors that influence cruciate ligament rupture.
See Dr. Bertocci's full CV (PDF)
Email: g.bertocci@louisville.edu
Mary Clyde Pierce, M.D.; Medical Director, Injury Risk Assessment and Prevention Lab. Dr. Pierce is a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and at the Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago, IL. She is the Director of Research for the Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine at Lurie Children’s Hospital where she has research, clinical and teaching responsibilities. Dr. Pierce's subspecialty training is in Pediatric Emergency Medicine with additional training in the area of child abuse. She received her medical degree from Louisiana State University of New Orleans in 1989, her specialty training in Pediatrics from Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1992, and her subspecialty training in Pediatric Emergency Medicine from the University of Pittsburgh, Children's Hospital, in 1994. Dr. Pierce is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics as well as the Society for Pediatric Research. Dr. Pierce began her collaboration with Dr. Bertocci in 1997 combining their expertise in medicine and engineering and utilizing both a clinical and experimental or computational modeling approach. Dr. Pierce's research has focused on pediatric injuries with an emphasis on differentiating abusive from accidental trauma. She has developed injury plausibility models and clinical decision rules to differentiate abusive and accidental trauma in infants and young children.
See Dr. Pierce's full CV (PDF)
Email: mpierce@luriechildrens.org
Phone: (773) 880-8124
Karen Frost Bertocci, Ph.D., MBA is an Associate Professor in Bioengineering. Dr. Bertocci’s academic training is in Rehabilitation Sciences and Technology. She completed her PhD in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences from the University of Pittsburgh in 2004. Dr. Bertocci completed a postdoctoral fellowship in orthopeadic rehabilitation outcomes at the University of Louisville in 2005, and a senior post-doctoral fellowship in wheelchair transportation safety at the University of Louisville in 2009. Her research has focused on the following primary areas: adaptive equipment and assistive technology as it relates to wheelchair transportation safety, access to healthcare for individuals with mobility disabilities, and outcomes-based research related to orthopedic surgery, chronic health conditions and disability. Dr. Bertocci is currently investigating incidents related to lift usage and wheelchair securement on paratransit vehicles and incidents related to ramp usage on public transit buses. These efforts will lead to improved understanding of factors influencing wheelchair passenger boarding and alighting incidents, and the development of wheelchair lift and ramp design guidelines and operational recommended best practices. Related research includes assessment of ergonomic factors related to transit operator non-compliance with ADA wheelchair securement practices. Dr. Bertocci has participated in the ANSI/RESNA Committee on Wheelchairs and Transportation, and provided expert witness services for legal cases involving wheelchair transportation safety on public transit vehicles. Dr. Bertocci’s outcomes-based research includes rehabilitation outcomes following total hip and knee arthroplasty (isokinetic and isometric strength measurements, functional performance outcomes, QOL), development of a mobile health technology for measuring pain and activities of daily living for arthritis and orthopaedic patients, and pressure ulcer prevention technologies for use in the veterinary field. Dr. Bertocci is a standing member on the Dept. of Veterans Affairs, RR&D Scientific Merit Review Board for Psychological Health & Social Reintegration Subcommittee.
See Dr. Frost's full CV (Word)
Email: klbert03@louisville.edu
Angela Knight Thompson, Ph.D., PE, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Engineering Fundamentals at the University of Louisville. She began her work in the iRAP lab in 2005 and received her PhD in Mechanical Engineering May 2011. Her work has primarily focused on investigating injury risk associated with short distance falls in children. The aim of this research is to aid physicians in distinguishing between abusive and accidental injuries in children. She is currently working on a project to better understand the mechanism or cause of a fracture type that is highly suggestive of abuse in infants - classic metaphyseal lesions (or CML fractures).
See Dr. Thompson's full CV (PDF)
Email: angela.thompson@louisville.edu
Graduate Students
Keyonna McKinsey, B.S., is a Bioengineering Master’s student who has been working in the iRAP lab since May 2016. Her thesis project involves determining the risk of fracture of a pediatric femur due to falls through finite element analysis and mechanical testing of models.
E-mail: keyonna.mckinsey@louisville.edu
Marie Riggs, M.Eng., is a graduate student in Mechanical Engineering. She is currently pursuing her PhD with her dissertation work focused on the intersection of design theory with medical devices used for minimally invasive surgeries. Specifically, the goal of her research is to determine the relationship between design complexity and both failure modes and the severity of adverse event outcomes related to minimally invasive surgical devices. Such research provides both users and designers of surgical devices with valuable insight into potential complications and a means to implement user and design countermeasures against undesired outcomes in the surgical setting. She is currently part owner of a research company in an emerging industry and plans to continue on the path of entrepreneurship after graduation.
Danielle Cory, B.S., is a Bioengineering Master’s student who has been working in the iRAP lab since June 2017. Her thesis project involves a child care study using head acceleration data that assists in the development of resources to assess biomechanical injury compatibility in pediatric falls.
Bret Hilt, B.S., is a Bioengineering Master’s student at the University of Louisville who has been
working in the iRAP lab since August 2017. His thesis project focuses on collecting data on pediatric
head accelerations during normal activities. The project will determine typical linear and rotational
acceleration thresholds experienced in children and will provide useful information in assessing
pediatric injuries.
E-mail: bret.hilt@louisville.edu
Elizabeth Ehlman, B.S., is a graduate student in Bioengineering who has worked in the iRAP lab since August 2017. She is currently pursuing her M.Eng. with her thesis focused on the development of a plantar-stimulating shoe to aid in balance and gait for patients with decreased sensation. Her interests include medical device design, sports and injury biomechanics, and rehabilitation engineering. Her previous work includes co-ops at Cook Medical, Inc., Cook Endoscopy, Ethicon Endo-Surgery, and U of L Bioengineering’s Multidisciplinary Oncology Lab.
E-mail: elizabeth.ehlman@louisville.edu
Research Engineers
Nathan Brown, Ph.D., is a research engineer at the University of Louisville. He has worked in the iRAP lab since 2007 and received his PhD in Mechanical Engineering in December 2012. His PhD dissertation was titled "Development of a canine stifle computer model to evaluate cranial cruciate ligament deficiency and surgical management," which used 3D computer modeling to investigate ligament loads and stability in the canine knee. He will use the canine knee computer model to further investigate orthopedic surgeries and braces that stabilize the cranial cruciate ligament deficient canine knee. Nathan’s primary research focus is to utilize computer modeling to simulate neuromusculoskeletal biomechanics. Nathan plans to continue working at the iRAP lab to develop simulation models to investigate the ambulatory neurorecovery process through muscle activation patterns in canines and children following spinal cord injury.
Email: npbrow02@louisville.edu
Raymond DSouza, Ph.D., is a research endineer in the iRAP lab. He received his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Louisville in 2015. Raymond began working in the iRAP lab as a research assistant under Dr. Bertocci in projects including the design, development and testing of an energy absorbing caster for a wheelchair and the development and validation of a computer simulation model for frontal impact of motor vehicle transportation focusing on wheelchair users. His work is focused on child abuse prevention. His current project includes the design and development of a custom force sensing skin adapted to a child surrogate test dummy so as to identify potential bruising locations during simulated fall events.
Email: rrdsou01@louisville.edu
Craig Smalley, M.Eng., is a research engineer with the iRAP lab. He received his Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering from U of L in Aug 2009. His primary projects involve investigating the safety and accessibility of public transit vehicles for wheelchair users, particularly in entering and exiting vehicles. He is also involved in researching injury associated with child abuse. Past projects include the development and evaluation of devices to prevent pressure ulcers in disabled canines, the study of gait characteristics in canines who have undergone surgery for the repair of injured cranial cruciate ligaments, and the evaluation of health care clinics for compliance with ADA regulations.
Email: craig.smalley@louisville.edu
Alumni
Kyle Bialczak, BS - Mechanical Engineering, 2006, University of Louisville
Emily Hemberger, BS - School of Medicine, 2007, University of Louisville
Keyonna McKinsey, M.Eng. - Bioengineering, 2018, University of Louisville
Gregory States, M.Eng. - Bioengineering, 2016, University of Louisville
Benjamin Cahill, M.Eng. - Bioengineering, 2016, University of Louisville
Nathan Brown, M.Eng. - Mechanical Engineering, 2009, University of Louisville
Craig Smalley, M.Eng. - Mechanical Engineering, 2009, University of Louisville
Raymond D'Souza, MS - Mechanical Engineering, 2008, University of Louisville
Zdravko Salipur, M.Eng. - Mechanical Engineering, 2008, University of Louisville
Sheryll Sison, M.Eng. - Mechanical Engineering, 2008, University of Louisville
Edward Fowler, M.Eng. - Mechanical Engineering, 2008, University of Louisville
Angela Knight, M.Eng. - Mechanical Engineering, 2007, University of Louisville
Catherine Armstrong, MS - Rehabilitation Science and Technology, 2004, University of Pittsburgh
Fernando Aguel, MS - Bioengineering, 2004, University of Pittsburgh
BC Deemer, MS - Bioengineering, 2001, University of Pittsburgh
Alex Leary, MS - Bioengineering, 2000, University of Pittsburgh
Marie Riggs, PhD - Mechanical Engineering, 2017, University of Louisville
Raymond D'Souza, PhD - Mechanical Engineering, 2015, University of Louisville
Zdravko Salipur, PhD - Mechanical Engineering, 2012, University of Louisville
Nathan Brown, PhD - Mechanical Engineering, 2012, University of Louisville
Angela Knight Thompson, PhD - Mechanical Engineering, 2011, University of Louisville
Dongran Ha, PhD - Rehabilitation Science and Technology, 2004, University of Pittsburgh
Linda van Roosmalen, PhD - Rehabilitation Science and Technology, 2001, University of Pittsburgh
