News & Events
2023 Northwest Biomechanics Symposium
May 19-20, 2023
At the 2023 Northwest Biomechanics Symposium, IPML researchers described their findings on the mechanisms head impacts in hockey and of falls in mountain biking!
On May 19, 2023, IPML trainee Omid Vakili provided a poster presentation on “Effects of surface stiffness and mass on head impact severity”. Read Omid's abstract here:
https://depts.washington.edu/nwbs/2023/images/NWBS2023Program5.16.pdf
On May 20, 2023, IPML trainee Rickie Ma provided an oral presentation on “Biomechanical contributors to head impact during falls in mountain biking”. Read Rickie’s abstract here:
https://depts.washington.edu/nwbs/2023/images/NWBS2023Program5.16.pdf
2022 Canadian Injury Prevention Conference
Nov 2-3, 2022
At the 2022 Canadian Injury Prevention Conference, IPML researchers described their findings on the mechanisms of falls in mountain biking!
On Nov 2, 2022, IPML trainee Emily P. Chilton provided an oral presentation on “Decision making in mountain biking: role of riding ability and fear of falling”. Read Emily’s abstract here: https://www.injuryresearch.bc.ca/2022conference/program/concurrent-session-2/
On Nov 3, 2022, IPML trainee Rickie Ma provided a mini-oral presentation on “Circumstances of falls causing head impact in mountain biking”. Read Rickie’s abstract here: https://www.injuryresearch.bc.ca/2022conference/program/concurrent-session-3/mini-orals/#3a
On Nov 3, 2022, IPML trainee Sukhman Gosal provided a mini-oral presentation on “Development and validation of a questionnaire for analyzing falls in mountain biking”. Read Sukhman’s abstract here: https://www.injuryresearch.bc.ca/2022conference/program/concurrent-session-3/mini-orals/#3a
Educational videos on falls among older adults
Sept 13, 2022
With support from AGE-WELL, the IPML has developed a series of educational videos on fall and injury prevention in older adults. The videos are being used in the Canadian Falls Prevention Curriculum, and in training modules in Fraser Health, British Columbia’s largest health authority.
SFU TIPS Falls in Older Adults - Introduction
SFU TIPS - Falls in Older Adults: (1) What causes falls?
SFU TIPS - Falls in Older Adults: (2) Hip protectors
Data Sharing: 300 real-life fall videos are available on Databrary.
March 1, 2022
Our collection of shared video footage of real-life falls in older adults has been increased to 300! In 2018, we posted videos of 105 falls to Databrary, a NYU based data sharing network. We have now added an additional 195 real-life fall videos, bringing the total to 300 falls. We have also added details on the cause of the fall, the activity at the time of the fall, and whether or not the resident was using a mobility aid (and what type) at the time of the fall, to allow users to search for specific types of falls. We have also provided additional details on the injuries resulting from falls.
Invited talk: Virginia Tech
January 28, 2022
Dr. Steve Robinovitch gave an invited talk on “Understanding the cause and prevention of falls and injuries in older adults: Insights from video capture of over 3000 real-life falls in long-term care“” to faculty and graduate students in biomedical engineering at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA.
Journal Publication: Accuracy of Kinovea software in estimating body segment movements during falls
October 25, 2021
Congratulations to Natalie Shishov, Karam Elabd, Vicki Komisar, Helen Chong, and Steve Robinovitch for their successful publication of “Accuracy of Kinovea software in estimating body segment movements during falls captured on standard video: Effects of fall direction, camera perspective and video calibration technique”. The article is available online through PLoS ONE (doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0258923)
Keynote Talk: 8th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Fall Prevention.
October 24, 2021
At the 8th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Fall Prevention in Nagoya, Japan, Dr. Steve Robinovitch provided a keynote talk on “Understanding the cause and prevention of falls and injuries in older adults: Insights from video capture of over 3000 real-life falls in long-term care”.
Conference: Canadian Association of Gerontology 50th Annual Conference
October 23, 2021.
Rasaval Aujla delivered an oral presentation at the CAG 2021 Conference with researchers Dawn Mackey, Vicki Komisar, and Alex Korall in a symposium titled, “Promoting resident safety in long-term care: Insights on the cause and prevention of fall-related injuries.”
News Update: IPML lab member receives CSA and ASTM Graduate Scholarship
September 20, 2021
Congratulations to Omid Vakili on receiving two graduate scholarships from CSA (Canadian Standards Association) and ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials).
Omid is pursuing research in the area of injury biomechanics in ice hockey. Head impact to the shielding (or glass) accounts for up to 37% of concussions in hockey. Omid’s research seeks to improve our understanding of the dynamics of head-to-shielding impacts, and how head impact severity is affected by modifications to the effective stiffness and mass of the shielding. Ultimately, Omid’s findings can promote safer environments to protect the brain health of ice hockey player through helping inform CSA and ASTM standards for hockey facilities and protective equipment.
News Update: Follow us on Twitter!
July 31, 2021.
We’re live on Twitter! The IPML Trainees will update followers on lab publications, conferences, and other exciting news.
Follow or Tweet us at @ipml_sfu or https://twitter.com/ipml_sfu.
Journal Publication: Effective stiffness, damping and mass of the body during laboratory simulations of shoulder checks in ice hockey
July 28, 2021.
Congratulations to Olivia Aguiar, Olga Radivojevic, Omid Vakili, and Steve Robinovitch for their successful publication of “Effective stiffness, damping and mass of the body during laboratory simulations of shoulder checks in ice hockey”. The article is available online through Sports Biomechanics (doi: 10.1080/14763141.2021.1951828).
Journal Publication: Effect of holding objects on the occurrence of head impact in falls by older adults
July 13, 2021.
Congratulations to Vicki Komisar, Natalie Shishov, and Steve Robinovitch for their successful publication of “Effect of holding objects on the occurrence of head impact in falls by older adults: Evidence from real-life falls in long-term care”. The article is available online through the Journals of Gerontology (doi:10.1093/gerona/glaa168).
Conference: 2021 AGE-WELL EPIC Conference
June 17, 2021.
Biance Te, Mackenzie Heidel, Vicki Komisar, and Stephen Robinovitch participated in the virtual 2021 AGE-WELL EPIC Conference. Mackenzie Heidel delivered an oral presentation titled “Falls, head impacts and mortality among older adults in long-term care”.
Congratulations to Bianca Te who won the Best Twitter Presentation Award at the 2021 AGE-WELL EPIC Conference! Her exemplary posts discuss important work toward understanding compensatory stepping responses in LTC residents in the real world.
Check out Bianca’s pinned thread on Twitter: https://twitter.com/biancaate
Conference: The Annual Meeting of the Northwest Biomechanics Symposium (NWBS 2021)
June 15th to 16th, 2021.
Omid Vakili, and Steve Robinovitch participated in the virtual Biennial Meeting for NWBS. Omid delivered an oral presentation titled “Effects of Shielding Stiffness and Mass on Head Impact Accelerations in Ice Hockey”.
Journal Publication: The role of fall biomechanics in the cause and prevention of bone fractures in older adults
June 9, 2021.
Congratulations to Vicki Komisar, and Steve Robinovitch for their successful publication of “The Role of Fall Biomechanics in the Cause and Prevention of Bone Fractures in Older Adults”. The article is available online through Current Osteoporosis Reports (doi: 10.1123/japa.2019-034510.1007/s11914-021-00685-9)
Conference: The Biennial Meeting of the Canadian Society for Biomechanics (CSB 2021)
May 25th to 28th, 2021.
Omid Vakili, Olga Radivojevic, Vicki Komisar and Steve Robinovitch participated in the virtual Biennial Meeting for CSB. Omid presented a poster titled “A mathematical model of head-to-shielding impacts in ice hockey” and Olga delivered an oral presentation titled “Effective stiffness & damping of shoulder checks in ice hockey”. Vicki also delivered an oral presentation titled “Association between fall characteristics and risk for head impact and injury in older adults in long-term care”.
Congratulations to Dr. Stephen Robinovitch, who received the CSB/SCB Career Award. The CSB-SCB Career Award is “the highest honour conferred by the Society and is reserved to those individuals who have given exemplary contribution to the field of biomechanics and its promotion in Canada”. This prestigious award, where there have only been 14 recipients since 1990, is given to an individual who demonstrates a record of outstanding research, participation in CSB-SCB activities, mentorship, and promotion of Biomechanics.
Dr. Robinovitch delivered a notable presentation titled “Pushing back on gravity: Insights through biomechanics on the cause and prevention of falls and injuries in older adults”.
Keynote Talk: 16th International Symposium of 3D-Analysis of Human Movement
May 6, 2021.
Dr. Steve Robinovitch and Ms. Natalie Shishov gave a keynote talk on “Quantifying movement profiles from planar video of real-life falls in older adults” at the 16th International Symposium of 3D-Analysis of Human Movement in Ames, IA.
Conference: 11th Annual BPK Research Day
April 9, 2021.
Members of the IPML attended the 11th Annual Research Day organized by the Department of Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology at SFU. Rasaval Aujla gave an oral presentation titled "Upper-limb bracing strategies used by older adults in long-term care to avoid head impact in forward falls". Olga Radivojevic, Biance Te, and Mackenzie Heidel delivered poster presentations titled “Watch Where You're Falling: Head Orientation as an Estimate of Gaze Behavior in Young Adults During Sideways Falls”, “Compensatory stepping responses in real-life falls by older adults”, and “Falls, head impacts, and mortality among older adults in long-term care”, respectively. PhD student Olivia Aguiar co-chaired the inaugural online event and Dr. Stephen Robinovitch helped with the judging of posters.
Invited Talk: Invited talk: Ridge Meadows Division of Family Practice
April 8, 2021.
Dr. Steve Robinovitch presented on “Preventing falls and injuries: insights from video capture of real-life falls in long-term care” to the Ridge Meadows (BC) Division of Family Practice Long Term Care Initiative.
Invited talk: Baycrest Geriatric Medicine Rounds
February 18, 2021.
Dr. Steve Robinovitch presented on “Understanding injury risk during falls: Insights from video capture of over 2700 real-life falls in long-term care” at the Baycrest Geriatric Medicine Rounds in Toronto, ON.
ISPGR Blog Post: Data sharing during COVID - The TIPS video database of real-life falls
February 8th, 2021.
Congratulations to Peter Hong, Helen Chong, Vicki Komisar, and Steve Robinovitch for their successful publication of “Data sharing during COVID: The TIPS video database of real-life falls”. The blog post is available online through the International Society of Posture and Gait Research (ISPGR) website: https://ispgr.org/data-sharing-during-covid-the-tips-video-database-of-real-life-falls/
Café Scientifique: Simon Fraser University
January 27, 2021.
Dr. Steve Robinovitch gave a talk on “The ecology of falls in older adults” to the general public at SFU Café Scientifique in Burnaby, BC.
Invited Talk: Vancouver-West Probus Club
January 14, 2021.
Dr. Steve Robinovitch delivered a keynote presentation titled, “Falls in seniors: Why most are benign and some are catastrophic,” to knowledge users at the Vancouver-West Probus Club in Vancouver, BC.
Invited Talk: Clarkson University
November 9, 2020.
Dr. Steve Robinovitch gave an invited talk on “Insights on the cause and prevention of falls and fall-related injuries in older adults” to faculty and graduate students in physical therapy and biomedical engineering at Clarkson University in Potsdam, NY.
Journal Publication: Recreational therapy to promote mobility in long-term care
July 28, 2020.
Congratulations to Yijian Yang, Kimberely van Schooten, Heather McKay, Joanie Sims-Gould, Raymond Hoang, and Steve Robinovitch for their successful publication of “Recreational therapy to promote mobility in long-term care: A scoping review”. The article is available online through the Journal of Aging and Physical Activity (doi: 10.1123/japa.2019-0345).
Conference: Engineering in Medicine and Biology Conference
July 20, 2020.
IPML researchers recently worked with a multidisciplinary team to present “Estimating Trunk and Neck Stabilization for Avoiding Head Impact During Real-World Falls in Older Adults.” presented at the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Conference (EMBC). In addition to lead author Professor Calvin Kuo at UBC, the study authors include IPML researchers Natalie Shishov, Karam Elabd, Vicki Komisar, Helen Chong, Tamara Phu, Lyndsey Anderson, and Stephen Robinovitch, U Ottawa researcher Thomas (Blaine) Hoshizaki, U Waterloo researcher Andrew Laing, and UBC researcher Peter Cripton. The study focused on analyzing 12 real-world backward falls in long-term care captured on video, where head impact was avoided. We report values of neck stiffness, neck damping, and target posture, which suggest that older adults actively contracted their neck muscles to maintain the head upright, indicating the importance of neck strength for avoiding head impact during a fall.
Journal Publication: Head impacts in men’s university ice hockey: glass and opponent’s hands are most common objects to impact the head
July 17, 2020.
IPML researchers Olivia Aguiar, Brigitte Potvin, Yijian Yang, Kevin Hua, Megan Bruschetta, Shane Virani, and Steve Robinovitch recently published their article "American society of biomechanics journal of biomechanics award 2019: Circumstances of head impacts in men's university ice hockey" in the Journal of Biomechanics. The article follows Olivia Aguiar’s success in winning the Journal of Biomechanics Award for best paper at the American Society of Biomechanics meeting in June 2019. The study examined the circumstances of 449 head impacts experienced by 37 players over 33 games in men’s university hockey. The results show that 93% of head impacts involved contact with another player. However, players were just as likely to experience head impact with an environmental object (most often the glass), as with an opposing player’s body part (most often the hand). The study also found that only 16% of head impacts involving contact with another player resulted in an infraction, indicating the need for improved rule enforcement. Thanks to the SFU men's ice hockey team for their participation, and to NSERC for their financial support. Download the article here.
Journal Publication: Holding objects during falls affects risk for head impact
July 5, 2020.
We might think of holding objects while falling as dangerous, but IPML researchers Vicki Komisar, Natalie Shishov, Yijian Yang, and Steve Robinovitch found that holding weight-bearing objects (such as walkers and chairs) reduced the risk for head impact during falls in older adults, as described in their article “Effect of holding objects on the occurrence of head impact in falls by older adults: Evidence from real-life falls in long term care" published in The Journals of Gerontology, Series A. The team also found that holding non-weight-bearing objects (such as a cup or book) did not affect the odds of head impact, probably due to the tendency for fallers to release grasp of the object during descent. Download the article here.
Journal Publication: Improved evidence on the types of falls in older adults that cause hip fracture
May 13, 2020.
While falls cause 95% of all hip fractures in older adults, only about 1% of falls cause hip fracture. How do falls that cause hip fracture differ from falls that don’t? IPML researchers Yijian Yang, Vicki Komisar, Byran Lo, Natalie Shishov, Alex Korall, Fabio Feldman, and Steve Robinovitch shed light on this question in their recently published paper “The Effect of Fall Biomechanics on Risk for Hip Fracture in Older Adults: A Cohort Study of Video-Captured Falls in Long-Term Care,” published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research with open access. The results show that forward falls were just as likely as sideways falls to cause hip fracture, due to the tendency for fallers to rotate during descent. The results also showed that falling while using a mobility aid (such as walker) reduced the risk of hip fracture 3-fold, and falling while wearing hip protectors reduced the risk of hip fracture 2-fold. Download the article and related video footage here.
Knowledge Translation: Parachute
Feb 13, 2020.
Parachute is a leading non-profit organization in Canada dedicated to injury prevention across the lifespan. Parachute recently created a Seniors’ Fall Prevention Collection on their website, which includes a section on Online Courses. Parachute has included a link to the TIPS website of videos of real-life falls in older adults.
Journal Publication: Development of a stick-on hip protector: A multiple methods study to improve hip protector design for older adults in the acute care environment
December 5, 2019.
Emily Post, Vicki Komisar, Joanie Sims-Gould, Alexandra Korall, Fabio Feldman, and Steve Robinovitch worked together to evaluate a novel type of stick-on hip protector for use by older patients in acute care. Since over 90% of hip fractures in older adults result from falls, and hospital patients are especially high risk, the need for an easy-to-use solution is evident with the expectation that decreasing barriers to use will result in an increase in user compliance. Congratulations on their recent publication "Development of a stick-on hip protector: A multiple methods study to improve hip protector design for older adults in the acute care environment", which can be viewed online from the Journal of Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies Engineering.
Connference: Origins of Balance Deficits and Falls (OBDAF)
December 2-3, 2019.
Members of the IPML attended the Origins of Balance Deficits and Falls Deficits Research Cluster (OBDAF) at the University of British Columbia. Undergraduate Trainee Rasaval Aujla gave a presentation titled "Upper-limb arrest strategies used by older adults to avoid head impact during forward falls". Great work, Rasaval!
Conference: AGE-WELL 5th Annual Conference
October 22-24, 2019.
Members of the IPML (Steve Robinovitch, Vicki Komisar, and Hanna Oh) attended AGE-WELL's 5th annual conference in Moncton, New Brunswick to present their research. Steve presented two posters ["Wearable technology implementation and innovation to prevent fall-related hip fractures and traumatic brain injuries in older adults (AWCAT-2019-143)" and "Preventing hip fractures in older adults with wearable hip protectors: how AGE-WELL WP5.2 research led to improved evidence on clinical effectiveness, and CSA standards for hip protectors"], Vicki participated in the Science Slam with a talk titled "Rise and (don't) fall: Ecological determinants of the risk of falls during sit-to-stand transfers in older adults living in long-term care" and Hanna participated in the Drinks and Demos event, where she presented her work on protective head gear for older adults. AWCAT-2019-143 team member Alexandra Korall also attended the conference and gave a presentation titled "A systematic approach to select theories, models and frameworks to underpin the study of implementing hip protectors in long-term care".
Knowledge Translation: The Globe and Mail
September 20, 2019.
IPML's Dr. Vicki Komisar appeared in the Globe and Mail for her work on reducing the risk of falls and minimizing their consequences. Check it out here!
Journal Publication: Effectiveness of Hip Protectors to Reduce Risk for Hip Fracture from Falls in Long-Term Care
August 30, 2019.
Congratulations to Alex Korall and team members who successfully published a paper on the "Effectiveness of Hip Protectors to Reduce Risk for Hip Fracture from Falls in Long-Term Care". This work is a key publication from Alex's PhD work in the IPML. The article is available from The Journal of the American Directors Association.
Award: AGE-WELL Graduate and Postdoctoral Award
August 15, 2019.
Congratulations Hanna Oh for receiving an AGE-WELL Graduate and Postdoctoral 2019 award to pursue her work on "Developing and evaluating wearable devices to prevent fall-related brain injury in older adults".
Conference: Congress of the International Society of Biomechanics 2019
July 31-August 4, 2019.
Members of the IPML attended the Congress of the International Society of Biomechanics 2019 (held in conjunction with the annual meeting of the American Society of Biomechanics) in Calgary.
Olivia Aguiar gave a presentation on “Situational factors associated with the frequency and severity of head impacts in varsity ice hockey”, and was selected as the recipient for the Journal of Biomechanics Award from the American Society of Biomechanics. Congratulations, Olivia!
Karam Elabd presented a poster titled “Effect of torso curvature and hip stiffness on head impact severity during backward falls with a falling dummy”.
Steve Robinovitch attended as an invited speaker and presented on "Preventing falls and injuries in older adults through biomechanics".
Publication: Hip Protector Testing and Labelling Standard
July 22, 2019.
Researchers from AGE-WELL’S Work Project 5.2 team have worked with the Canadian Standards Association to publish a standard on hip protector testing and labelling. The standard will provide important guidance for market regulation and consumer selection of products.
Conference: ISPGR World Congress 2019
June 30th to July 4th, 2019.
Natalie Shishov, Vicki Komisar, Yijian Yang, and Steve Robinovitch travelled to Edinburgh, Scotland, to participate in the ISPGR World Congress 2019. Natalie presented a poster titled “Kinematic analysis of videos of real-life falls in older adults using Kinovea software” and Vicki presented a poster on the “Effect of holding and grasping objects on risk for head impact during falls in older adults”. Steve took part in a panel discussion on data analytics in real-life fall situations.
Journal Publication: A comparison of the magnitude and duration of linear and rotational head accelerations in hockey
June 2019.
Congratulations Brigitte Potvin, Olivia Aguiar, Vicki Komisar, Amerdeep Sidhu, Karam Elabd, and Steve Robinovitch for their successful publication of “A comparison of the magnitude and duration of linear and rotational head accelerations generated during hand-, elbow-, and shoulder-to-head checks delivered by hockey players”. The article is available online through the Journal of Biomechanics, 91 (25), 43-50.
Journal Publication: The Flooring for Injury Prevention (FLIP) Study
June 2, 2019.
"The Flooring for Injury Prevention (FLIP) Study of compliant flooring for the prevention of fall-related injuries in long-term care: A randomized trial” has been published! This study represents a collaborative effort between Fraser Health Authority, the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility, New Visa Society Care Home, the University of Waterloo, and Simon Fraser University. It is a four-year, randomized controlled trial of compliant flooring for reducing injuries in older adults in long-term care compared to a plywood sublayer. The article is available online through PLOS Medicine.
Invited Talk: Canadian Association for Retired Persons
April 15, 2019.
Dr. Steve Robinovitch gave an invited talk at a meeting of the Canadian Association for Retired Persons, in Vancouver, BC. The presentation, titled “Preventing injuries from falls in older adults” was delivered as a part of the National Preventative Health & Aging Education Series.
Knowledge Translation: CBC Interview
February 17, 2019.
CBC's The National showcased the IPML's research on falls and injury prevention during their segment about fall risks in seniors. Click here for the article and video.
A 7 minute interview with Dr. Robinovitch on CBC’s Radio Canada International is available here.