The Impact of Race on Plantar Loading and Research Engagement

Brisbane, Julia

The Impact of Race on Plantar Loading and Research Engagement

dc.contributor.author	Brisbane, Julia	en
dc.contributor.committeechair	Queen, Robin M.	en
dc.contributor.committeemember	London, Jeremi S.	en
dc.contributor.committeemember	Baker, Charlotte	en
dc.contributor.committeemember	McCullough, Matthew	en
dc.contributor.department	Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics	en
dc.date.accessioned	2022-05-31T18:41:15Z	en
dc.date.available	2022-05-31T18:41:15Z	en
dc.date.issued	2022	en
dc.description.abstract	African Americans (AA) are twice as likely as White Americans (WA) to experience diabetes-related foot amputation due to foot ulcers. Foot ulcers are often caused by high plantar pressure, and several factors can impact plantar loading. Thus, there is a need to determine if race is a significant predictor of plantar loading. Additionally, with the current state of racial health disparities there is a need to determine racial differences in research engagement and mistrust between AA and WA. Data was collected from 107 participants, aged 18-30, in this Institutional Review Board approved study. An EMED pressure-measurement system (Novel Electronics, St. Paul, MN, USA) was used to collect plantar loading data. Additional measurements collected from each participant included arch height index (AHI), standing height, gait speed, and weight. Participants also completed two surveys focused on research engagement and research mistrust. A multiple linear regression was used to test if race and other factors significantly predicted plantar loading. Non-parametric tests were used to test if there were significant differences in research engagement and mistrust between AA and WA. The analysis determined that race was a significant predictor for plantar loading, along with age, AHI, gait speed, sex, and body mass index (BMI). Additionally, it was found that research engagement practices and feelings of research mistrust differed significantly between AA and WA young adults. These findings could improve our understanding as to why AA are more likely to have diabetic foot ulcers than WA, and why AA are less likely to participate in research than WA.	en
dc.description.abstractgeneral	African Americans (AA) are twice as likely than White Americans (WA) to experience diabetes-related foot amputation due to foot ulcers. Foot ulcers are often caused by high plantar pressure, and several factors can alter plantar loading. Thus, there is a need to determine if race is a significant predictor of plantar loading. Additionally, with the current state of racial health disparities, there is a need to determine racial differences in research engagement and mistrust between AA and WA. Data was collected from 107 participants, aged 18-30. A pressure-measurement system was used to collect plantar loading data in seven regions of the foot during self-selected speed walking. The measurements collected from each participant, included arch height, standing height, gait speed, and weight. Participants were also asked to complete two surveys focused on research engagement and research mistrust. We used this data to evaluate if race and other factors predicted plantar loading and to compare survey responses between AA and WA. It was found that race, age, arch height, gait speed, sex, and BMI were considered significant predictor variables for plantar loading measures. Additionally, research engagement practices and feelings of research mistrust differed significantly between this younger sample of AA and WA. These findings help to improve our understanding of why AA are more likely to have diabetic foot ulcers than WA, and why AA are less likely to participate in research than WA, even as young adults.	en
dc.description.degree	M.S.	en
dc.format.medium	ETD	en
dc.format.mimetype	application/pdf	en
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10919/110367	en
dc.language.iso	en	en
dc.publisher	Virginia Tech	en
dc.rights	Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International	en
dc.rights.uri	http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/	en
dc.subject	plantar loading	en
dc.subject	research engagement	en
dc.subject	research mistrust	en
dc.subject	race	en
dc.subject	health	en
dc.subject	disparities	en
dc.title	The Impact of Race on Plantar Loading and Research Engagement	en
dc.type	Thesis	en
thesis.degree.discipline	Biomedical Engineering	en
thesis.degree.grantor	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University	en
thesis.degree.level	masters	en
thesis.degree.name	M.S.	en