Dr. Pietrosimone’s research focuses on lower extremity biomechanics and physical activity in orthopedic and sports medicine populations. Specifically, her work seeks to advance translational science by developing innovative rehabilitation strategies that address the lasting consequences of orthopedic injury to promote joint health and optimize patient quality of life.

Grant

Developing a Novel Clinical Care Model for Chronic Patellar Tendinopathy Utilizing Whole-Person Healthcare

Research Principal Investigator · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2023 - 2028

Selected Publications

Repeatability of Rotational 3-D Shear Wave Elasticity Imaging Measurements in Skeletal Muscle.

Journal Article Ultrasound Med Biol · March 2023Shear wave elasticity imaging (SWEI) usually assumes an isotropic material; however, skeletal muscle is typically modeled as a transversely isotropic material with independent shear wave speeds in the directions along and across the muscle fibers. To captu ...Full textLink to itemCite

Parametric Analysis of SV Mode Shear Waves in Transversely Isotropic Materials Using Ultrasonic Rotational 3-D SWEI.

Journal Article Ieee Trans Ultrason Ferroelectr Freq Control · November 2022Ultrasonic rotational 3-D shear wave elasticity imaging (SWEI) has been used to induce and evaluate multiple shear wave modes, including both the shear horizontal (SH) and shear vertical (SV) modes in in vivo muscle. Observations of both the SH and SV mode ...Full textLink to itemCite

Differences in Biomechanical Loading Magnitude During a Landing Task in Male Athletes With and Those Without Patellar Tendinopathy

Journal Article Journal of Athletic Training · November 1, 2022Context: Researchers have not established if overloading or underloading movement profiles are present in symptomatic and asymptomatic athletes with patellar tendon structural abnormality (PTA) compared with healthy athletes. Objective: To compare involved ...Full textCite

• An Open-Source Radon-Transform Shear Wave Speed Estimator with Masking Functionality to Isolate Different Shear-Wave Modes Conference Ieee International Ultrasonics Symposium, Ius · January 1, 2022The Radon Transform (RT) approach is a common method used to estimate shear wave trajectory and speed in ultrasound shear wave elasticity imaging (SWEI). The RT calculates the sum of 2D spatiotemporal data amplitude under each potential linear trajectory t ...Full text
   
• On the correlation between knee flexion and 3D shear wave speed and amplitude in in vivo vastus lateralis Conference Ieee International Ultrasonics Symposium, Ius · January 1, 2022We are investigating the potential for shear wave elasticity imaging (SWEI) derived material parameters to serve as biomarkers for skeletal muscle health. We consider muscle as a transversely isotropic (TI) material and use rotational 3D-SWEI acquisitions ...Full text
   
• Changes in Infrapatellar Fat Pad Volume 6 to 12 Months After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction and Associations With Patient-Reported Knee Function. Journal Article J Athl Train · November 1, 2021CONTEXT: Hypertrophy of the infrapatellar fat pad (IFP) in idiopathic knee osteoarthritis has been linked to deleterious synovial changes and joint pain related to mechanical tissue impingement. Yet little is known regarding the IFP's volumetric changes af ...Full text
   
• Identifying achilles tendon structure differences by ultrasound tissue characterization in asymptomatic individuals. Journal Article Scand J Med Sci Sports · October 2021 Ultrasound Tissue Characterization (UTC) is a modality that can characterize tendon tissue structure using ultrasonographic imaging paired with a computer algorithm to distinguish echo-types. Several studies have demonstrated UTCs ability to ...Full text
   
• Establishing Age- and Sex-Specific Norms for Pediatric Return-to-Sports Physical Performance Testing. Journal Article Orthop J Sports Med · August 2021BACKGROUND: Graft tears and contralateral anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears are common in pediatric athletes after ACL reconstruction. Use of objective return-to-sports (RTS) criteria, in particular physical performance tests (PPTs), is believed to re ...Full tex
   
• Association of Jump-Landing Biomechanics With Tibiofemoral Articular Cartilage Composition 12 Months After ACL Reconstruction. Journal Article Orthop J Sports Med · July 2021BACKGROUND: Excessively high joint loading during dynamic movements may negatively influence articular cartilage health and contribute to the development of posttraumatic osteoarthritis after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR). Little is know ...Full text
   
• Healthy Pediatric Athletes Have Significant Baseline Limb Asymmetries on Common Return-to-Sport Physical Performance Tests. Journal Article Orthop J Sports Med · January 2021BACKGROUND: Return to sport (RTS) after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction in children is associated with a much higher risk (∼30%) of subsequent ACL injury than in adults. Most RTS testing protocols use a limb symmetry index (LSI) ≥90% on phy ...Full text
   
• Group Shear Wave Speed Viscoelastic Analysis using 3D Rotational Volumetric Shear Wave Imaging in Relaxed and Contracted in vivo Muscle Conference  International Ultrasonics Symposium, Ius · January 1, 2021To characterize muscle tissue as a viscoelastic transversely isotropic material, we use rotational volumetric shear wave elasticity imaging (SWEI) and group speed viscoelastic analysis. We performed these measurements in vivo in the vastus lateralis of two ...Full text
   
• Factors Affecting in vivo SH and SV Mode Wave Propagation in vastus lateralis Muscle at Varying Knee Flexion Angles Using Ultrasonic Rotational 3D SWEI Conference International Ultrasonics Symposium, Ius · January 1, 2021We previously have demonstrated the use of ultrasonic rotational 3D SWEI to measure all three mechanical properties necessary to fully characterize the vastus lateralis muscle in vivo as an incompressible transversely isotropic material: transverse shear m ...Full tex
   
• Development of Concise Physical Performance Test Batteries in Young Athletes. Journal Article Med Sci Sports Exerc · December 2020PURPOSE: This study aimed 1) to define the principal components of physical function assessed by 10 common lower extremity physical performance tests and 2) to derive a reduced-item set of physical performance tests that efficiently and accurately measures ...Full text
   
• Landing biomechanics are not immediately altered by a single-dose patellar tendon isometric exercise protocol in male athletes with patellar tendinopathy: A single-blinded randomized cross-over trial. Journal Article Phys Ther Sport · November 2020
  OBJECTIVES: To a) determine the acute effects of a single-dose patellar tendon isometric exercise protocol on involved limb landing biomechanics in individuals with patellar tendinopathy and asymptomatic patellar tendon pathology, and b) determine if indiv ...Full text
   
• Landing Biomechanics, But Not Physical Activity, Differ in Young Male Athletes With and Without Patellar Tendinopathy. Journal Article J Orthop Sports Phys Ther · March 2020
  OBJECTIVE: To examine differences in biomechanical and physical activity load in young male athletes with and without patellar tendinopathy. DESIGN: Cross-sectional cohort study. METHODS: Forty-one young male athletes (15-28 years of age) were categorized ...Full text
   
• Hop Testing Lacks Strong Association With Key Outcome Variables After Primary Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: A Systematic Review. Journal Article Am J Sports Med · February 2020BACKGROUND: Single-legged hop tests are commonly used assessments in return to sport (RTS) testing after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR). Although these tests are commonly used, their predictive validity has not yet been established. PURPO ...Full text
   
• DAILY WALKING VOLUME AND INTENSITY AFTER ANTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT RECONSTRUCTION: A PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS Conference Osteoarthritis and Cartilage · 2020Link 
   
• Biomechanical Loading Magnitude Differences During Landing in Male Athletes with and without Patellar Tendinopathy Conference Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · June 2019Full textCite
   
• Associations between lateral compartment T1rho MRI inter-limb ratios and changes in walking gait kinematics following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction Conference Osteoarthritis and Cartilage · April 2019 Full text
   
• Gait Mechanics and T1ρ MRI of Tibiofemoral Cartilage 6 Months after ACL Reconstruction. Journal Article Med Sci Sports Exerc · April 2019
  PURPOSE: Aberrant walking biomechanics after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) are hypothesized to be associated with deleterious changes in knee cartilage. T1ρ magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is sensitive to decreased proteoglycan density ...Full text

If you are interested in joining the Pietrosimone Lab team, contact laura.pietrosimone@duke.edu. 

• 2022: Duke Sports Medicine Research Day (June 22, 2022): Best Scientific Research Presentation (PI) (Sports Physical Therapy Fellow and 1st Author: Tommy Otley)
   
• 2020: Kevin Shea Award, Best Scientific Poster: Gregory B, Magill J, Myers H, Pietrosimone L, Le D, Reinke E, Riboh J, Graft Choice in Young Active Patients- Use of Quadriceps Tendon Autograft Increased Likelihood of Meeting Return to Play Criteria at 6 Months Post Surgery. Pediatric Research in Sports Medicine (PRiSM), Phoenix, AZ January 2020.
   
• 2019: Duke Sports Medicine Research Day (June 14, 2019): Best Basic Science Abstract (PI) (Sports Physical Therapy Fellow and 1st Author: Christopher LeFever)
   
• 2017-2018: Foundation for Physical Therapy, American Physical Therapy Association, PODS II Scholarship Recipient
   
• 2017: Louis & Eleanor Duquette Scholarship, Human Movement Science Curriculum, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC