Caroline Stewart

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Biography

Following my PhD in Bioengineering at Strathclyde University on ‘Swing Phase Control in the Trans-Femoral Amputee’, in 1995 I became a Bioengineer at the Orthotic Research & Locomotor Assessment Unit (ORLAU), Movement Analysis Service, based at The Robert Jones & Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in Oswestry. My role there includes:

Development of a musculoskeletal research programme
Provision of engineering support for clinical and technical research projects
Contribution of engineering expertise to the routine measurement and assessment of patients
Design and implementation of quality assurance tests
Teaching and training of clinical and technical staff
Overall management of ORLAU, including current services and future planning.

Following many years of collaboration between ORLAU and researchers at Keele University I became an Honorary Keele Research Fellow in 2010 and began a secondment to Keele for 1 day per week in 2013, collaborating with Prof Anand Pandyan and his colleagues in ISTM.

Research and scholarship

ISTM research theme: Healthcare technologies

My research is based at ORLAU, part of the RJ&AH Hospital in Oswestry, and in laboratories at the School of Health & Rehabilitation on Keele University campus.

My main interests include:

Understanding normal and pathological gait patterns
The use of orthotic devices during gait and in the treatment of contractures
Modelling the human musculoskeletal system
The treatment of gait disorders in cerebral palsy and other neurological, neuromuscular and orthopaedic conditions

Further information

Professional and Committee Work

Chair of Clinical Movement Analysis Service (CMAS) UK and Ireland 2004 – 2008
Chair of CMAS Standards Committee, 2008 – 2013
Member of teaching faculty European Society for Movement Analysis in Adults and Children (ESMAC) 2001 – 2012
Member of Editorial Board of Gait and Posture Journal 2007 – present
Member of Scientific Advisory Panel for Action Medical Research charity 2009 – 2013
Training Officer for NHS Modernising Scientific Careers Clinical Engineering training scheme 2012- present

Professional Membership

Member of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (80010359) 1999 - present
Chartered Engineer 1999 - present
State Registered Clinical Scientist (CSO2158) 1999 - present
Member of the Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine 2013 – present
Chartered Scientist 2013 - present

Selected Publications

Metcalfe AJ, Stewart CJ, Postans NJ, Biggs PR, Whatling GM, Holt CA, Roberts AP. 2017. Abnormal loading and functional deficits are present in both limbs before and after unilateral knee arthroplasty. Gait Posture, vol. 55, 109-115. link> doi> full text>
McFall J, Stewart C, Kidgell V, Postans N, Jarvis S, Freeman R, Roberts A. 2015. Changes in gait which occur before and during the adolescent growth spurt in children treated by selective dorsal rhizotomy. Gait Posture, vol. 42(3), 317-322. link> doi> full text>
Mennan C, Hopkins T, Channon A, Elliot M, Johnstone B, Kadir T, Loughlin J, Peffers M, Pitsillides A, Sofat N, Stewart C, Watt FE, Zeggini E, Holt C, Roberts S. 2020. The Use of Technology in the Subcategorisation of Osteoarthritis: a Delphi Study Approach. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage. doi> link> full text>
Stewart C. 2019. Hamstring lengthening in cerebral palsy and the use of musculoskeletal modelling. Dev Med Child Neurol, vol. 61(7), 739. link> doi>
Philp F, Leboeuf F, Pandyan A, Stewart C. 2019. "Dynamic knee valgus" - Are we measuring what we think we're measuring? An evaluation of static and functional knee calibration methods for application in gait and clinical screening tests of the overhead squat and hurdle step. Gait Posture, vol. 70, 298-304. link> doi> full text>

Full Publications List show

Journal Articles

Mennan C, Hopkins T, Channon A, Elliot M, Johnstone B, Kadir T, Loughlin J, Peffers M, Pitsillides A, Sofat N, Stewart C, Watt FE, Zeggini E, Holt C, Roberts S. 2020. The Use of Technology in the Subcategorisation of Osteoarthritis: a Delphi Study Approach. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage. doi> link> full text>
Stewart C. 2019. Hamstring lengthening in cerebral palsy and the use of musculoskeletal modelling. Dev Med Child Neurol, vol. 61(7), 739. link> doi>
Philp F, Leboeuf F, Pandyan A, Stewart C. 2019. "Dynamic knee valgus" - Are we measuring what we think we're measuring? An evaluation of static and functional knee calibration methods for application in gait and clinical screening tests of the overhead squat and hurdle step. Gait Posture, vol. 70, 298-304. link> doi> full text>
Philp F, Blana D, Chadwick EK, Stewart C, Stapleton C, Major K, Pandyan AD. 2018. Study of the measurement and predictive validity of the Functional Movement Screen. BMJ Open Sport Exerc Med, vol. 4(1), e000357. link> doi> full text>
Fisher AG, Seaborne RA, Hughes TM, Gutteridge A, Stewart C, Coulson JM, Sharples AP, Jarvis JC. 2017. Transcriptomic and epigenetic regulation of disuse atrophy and the return to activity in skeletal muscle. FASEB J, vol. 31(12), 5268-5282. link> doi> full text>
Metcalfe AJ, Stewart CJ, Postans NJ, Biggs PR, Whatling GM, Holt CA, Roberts AP. 2017. Abnormal loading and functional deficits are present in both limbs before and after unilateral knee arthroplasty. Gait Posture, vol. 55, 109-115. link> doi> full text>
McFall J, Stewart C, Kidgell V, Postans N, Jarvis S, Freeman R, Roberts A. 2015. Changes in gait which occur before and during the adolescent growth spurt in children treated by selective dorsal rhizotomy. Gait Posture, vol. 42(3), 317-322. link> doi> full text>
Stewart CJ, Roberts A, Freeman R. 2015. Gait analysis to guide a selective dorsal rhizotomy program. Gait and Posture, vol. 42(1), 16-22. doi> link>
Laracca E, Stewart C, Postans N, Roberts A. 2014. The effects of surgical lengthening of hamstring muscles in children with cerebral palsy--the consequences of pre-operative muscle length measurement. Gait Posture, vol. 39(3), 847-851. link> doi>
Stewart C and Shortland AP. 2010. The biomechanics of pathological gait - from muscle to movement. Acta Bioeng Biomech, vol. 12(3), 3-12. link>
Stewart CJ. 2008. An investigation of the action of the hamstring muscles during standing using functional electrical stimulation (FES). Gait and Posture, vol. 28(3), 372-377. doi>
Cole GF, Farmer SE, Roberts A, Stewart C, Patrick JH. 2007. Selective dorsal rhizotomy for children with cerebral palsy: the Oswestry experience. Arch Dis Child, vol. 92(9), 781-785. link> doi>
Lewis A, Stewart C, Postans N, Trevelyan J. 2007. Development of an instrumented pole test for use as a gait laboratory quality check. Gait Posture, vol. 26(2), 317-322. link> doi>
Jonkers I, Stewart C, Desloovere K, Molenaers G, Spaepen A. 2006. Musculo-tendon length and lengthening velocity of rectus femoris in stiff knee gait. Gait Posture, vol. 23(2), 222-229. link> doi>
Stewart C, Jonkers I, Roberts A. 2004. Estimation of hamstring length at initial contact based on kinematic gait data. Gait Posture, vol. 20(1), 61-66. link> doi>
Jonkers I, Stewart C, Spaepen A. 2003. The complementary role of the plantarflexors, hamstrings and gluteus maximus in the control of stance limb stability during gait. Gait Posture, vol. 17(3), 264-272. link> doi>
Jonkers I, Stewart C, Spaepen A. 2003. The study of muscle action during single support and swing phase of gait: clinical relevance of forward simulation techniques. Gait Posture, vol. 17(2), 97-105. link> doi>

Other

Claydon LM, Stewart C, Postans N, Durairaj R, Pandyan AD. 2013. Strength training with electrical stimulation- Is this a viable method of preventing muscle atrophy after a moderate to severe stroke?. CEREBROVASCULAR DISEASES (vol. 35, p. 201). link>