Treadmill Laboratory

Dr. Queen also directs the Granata Treadmill Lab at Virginia Tech, which is housed in Norris Hall on the Virginia Tech campus in close proximity to both the main Granata Lab and Dr. Queen’s office. The Treadmill Lab contains an instrumented treadmill, motion capture equipment, and a physical therapy treatment table. This space is also equipped with a ceiling anchor to enable the use of a harness while on the treadmill.

Laboratory

Dr. Queen directs the Kevin P. Granata Biomechanics Lab (Granata Lab) at Virginia Tech and thus has full access to all of its resources. The Granata Lab encompasses 2,500 sq. ft. of space in Norris Hall on the Virginia Tech campus. Norris Hall is one of the engineering buildings on the Virginia Tech campus and houses faculty offices and classrooms for the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics. The Granata Lab contains office space for postdoctoral fellows, graduate, and undergraduate students. Dr. Queen’s office is also located in Norris Hall in close proximity to the Granata Lab. Most of the laboratory space is used for motion capture as well as biofeedback training. All of the laboratory equipment is around the perimeter of the lab, which allows for ample open floor space for all necessary training. In addition, the elastic bands that are needed for the tactile biofeedback portion of the project are currently available in the lab.

Clinical Space

Lewis Gale Sports Medicine – Orthopaedic Surgery Clinics – The sports medicine orthopaedic clinic and affiliated physicians which inlcudes Dr. Farmer’s practice is located near the Virginia Tech campus, approximately a 2 miles from the Granata Lab. In addition, Lewis Gale Sports Medicine has 6 offices throughout southwest Virginia which could be included as additional referral sites if there is any difficulty in recruiting patients to participate in the study. The orthopaedic clinic contains approximately 20 private exam rooms that will be used by the referring physicians when they are recruiting patients for this study and where any necissary clinical evaluations will be completed.  The sports medicine physicians work with both physician’s assistants as well as nurses in the clinical setting.  These physician extenders will be part of the study team and will be asked to help improve subject recruitment and aid in patient retention throughout the course of the research study.

Carilion Orthopaedic Clinics – The sports medicine orthopaedic clinic and affiliated physicians, have clinic facilities throughout Southwest Virginia.  The closest Carilion Orthopedic clinic is located adjacent to the Virginia Tech campus, approximately a quarter of a mile from the Granata Lab.  The orthopaedic clinics contain private exam rooms that are used by the referring physicians when they are recruiting patients for this study and where any necessary clinical evaluations will be completed.  The extended clinical team (nurse practitioners, physician’s assistants, and scheduling staff) are all part of our study team in order to optimize subject recruitment and aid in patient retention throughout the course of every research study. In addition, the Carilion Orthopedic facility adjacent to the Virginia Tech campus contains an outpatient physical therapy facility that can be used in the collection of physical performance tests, clinical evaluations as well as patient reported outcomes. Carilion Orthopedics also has a state of the art clinical and research space in the Institute for Orthopedics and Neurology (ION Building) located in Roanoke, VA.  This facility serves as a major referral site for patients interested in participating in our research projects.  Some of the clinical research studies in the Granata Lab will be completed in collaboration with the physician and physical therapists at the ION building in Roanoke, VA.

Athletics at Virginia Tech – The Granata Lab works closely with the sports medicine providers at Virginia Tech on both research projects as well as aiding in athlete performance testing throughout the year.  Collaborative research projects are being completed between the department of athletics and the Granata Lab.  Performance based testing and biofeedback interventions are being completed in the Virginia Tech Athletic Training Room on a variety of projects allowing the Granata Lab team to complete work in a variety of settings.