In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

Doctor of Philosophy in Applied Physiology
In the
School of Biological Sciences

Charles [Jake] Creech

Will defend his dissertation

CENTER OF MASS CONTROL DURING OVERGROUND WALKING IN
PEOPLE WITH INCOMPLETE SPINAL CORD INJURY 

April 13th, 2026
9 AM EST
Applied Physiology Building (555 14th St.), Room 1253


Virtual Platform Link Available Upon Request

Thesis Advisor:
Dr. Edelle Field-Fote, PT, Ph.D., FAPTA
School of Biological Sciences
Georgia Institute of Technology

Committee Members:
Edward Balog, Ph.D.
School of Biological Sciences
Georgia Institute of Technology

Young-Hui Chang, Ph.D.
School of Biological Sciences
Georgia Institute of Technology

Greg Sawicki, Ph.D.
School of Biological Sciences, Mechanical Engineering
Georgia Institute of Technology

Trisha Kesar, PT, Ph.D.
Division of Physical Therapy, School of Medicine
Emory University

ABSTRACT:
Among people with motor incomplete spinal cord injury (PwMISCI) who are ambulatory, most falls occur during walking. Maintaining balance during walking requires control of the body’s center of mass (CoM). As control of the CoM is influenced by kinematics of the lower extremities, altered motor control in PwMISCI can lead to instability during walking. To characterize control of the body’s CoM in PwMISCI, this thesis has two main aims: 1) assess the relationship between CoM acceleration and lower limb kinematics (i.e. gait quality) in PwMISCI and 2) compare mediolateral (ML) CoM acceleration during stance phase in individuals who are neurologically intact (NI) to PwMISCI. In Aim 1, we investigated the impact of commonly utilized and clinically modifiable measures of gait quality on acceleration of the CoM during overground walking in PwMISCI. We found that gait quality significantly impacted CoM acceleration with intralimb coordination and propulsion accounting for most of the variance. In Aim 2, we investigated ML CoM acceleration across the stance phase in PwMISCI compared to people who are NI. We found that PwMISCI demonstrated an increased magnitude of gait speed-normalized CoM acceleration in comparison to their NI peers. Furthermore, we determined that PwMISCI demonstrated altered patterns and magnitudes of acceleration that differ from people who are NI. Overall, these analyses provided insights toward the relationship between lower limb kinematics and dynamic stability during walking in PwMISCI that may supply clinicians with useful information for developing plans of care.