$40K award fuels Borderplex research into Chronic Ankle Instability
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA)---A team of researchers from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso and the University of Texas at El Paso have received a $40,000 grant from Sobel-Duncan Border Health Research Award to study chronic ankle instability, a condition disproportionately impacting the Borderplex region.
Colby Genrich, Family and Sports Medicine physician at Texas Tech said ankle sprains are among the most common musculoskeletal injuries in the United States, with roughly 1 million cases each year. About 70% of those cases develop into chronic ankle instability, a condition marked by the sensation that the ankle may “give out.”
Researchers say the region’s largely Hispanic population faces additional barriers to effective diagnosis, including language and literacy challenges. Clinicians currently rely on questionnaires to diagnose the condition, which can be difficult for patients who primarily speak Spanish or have limited health literacy.
A new smartphone-based tool uses artificial intelligence to improve the diagnosis of chronic ankle instability. The technology uses biomechanical analysis to assess walking patterns, which differ significantly in patients with chronic ankle instability.
“With this biomechanical analysis tool, we can quantitatively analyze gait patterns,” Jaeho Jang- Assistant professor at UTEP said. “Patients with chronic ankle instability walk differently than healthy individuals.”
The app is designed to help clinicians predict whether a patient will develop ankle instability weeks, months or even years after an initial sprain. Experts say it could eventually extend to diagnosing other joint and musculoskeletal conditions.
“We can start looking at hips, backs, wrists things patients complain about every day,” Genrich said. “Wearables might help diagnose injuries before they even happen.”
Researchers expect the technology to be available by August 2026.
