Taimoor Afzal, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellow
Northwestern University
Chicago, Illinois

I received my BS degree in Computer Engineering from COMSATS Institute of Information technology, Islamabad, Pakistan in 2003. In 2006, I was awarded a scholarship under the faculty development program to pursue an MS degree. I received an MS degree in Control Engineering from University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK. Later, I received my Ph.D. degree in Engineering Science and Systems from The University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Little Rock, AR, USA.
My primary research interest is to investigate the mechanisms of muscle weakness as a result of a neurological disorder. I am particularly interested in developing an understanding of alterations in muscle activation by studying electromyography and the impact of these alterations on muscle weakness. During my PhD, I investigated the role of muscle synergies in identifying different locomotion modes for amputees. The research enhanced my understanding of the EMG generation and its implications in motor control. As a postdoctoral fellow at TIRR Memorial Hermann Hospital, Houston, TX with Dr. Shuo-Hsiu Chang, I investigated the potential of exoskeletons as gait assistive devices in patients with stroke, multiple sclerosis, and spinal cord injury. Further during the fellowship, I investigated how alterations in muscle firing patterns occur during assistive and unassisted walking. During my current postdoctoral training with Dr. William Zev Rymer at the single motor unit lab at Shirley Ryan Ability lab and Northwestern University, I have investigated the role of enhanced motoneuron excitability and its implication on the stretch reflex using a tendon tapping device.

Presentation(s):

• Young Investigators Symposium: Fellows from the Advanced Rehabilitation Research Training Program (840781)

  Wednesday, October 21, 2020
  2:15 PM – 3:30 PM EST

• NIDILRR_Asymmetry of reflex thresholds between contralateral limbs in hemispheric stroke survivors and dominant limbs in neurologically intact individuals

  Wednesday, October 21, 2020
  2:34 PM – 2:46 PM EST