Professor To Research Student-Athlete Injuries

Western New Mexico University professor Dr. Miguel Narvaez will be joining a handful of professors in the region this summer to study the effects of injury among collegiate athletes.

Dr. Narvaez has been awarded fellowship in the first class of faculty to participate in the BUILDing SCHOLARS summer sabbatical program. He is one of five professors in the region to participate in the program.

The first class of faculty awardees is composed of participants from WNMU, Texas Southern University, Northern New Mexico College and University of Texas El Paso. They will be conducting research and receiving mentorship from an experienced researcher at their host institutions. Dr. Narvaez will conduct his research at the University of Arizona in Tucson.

“I am looking at doing research with jumping mechanics and basketball players,” said Dr. Narvaez. “We will be evaluating stress in joints and health related issues to sports medicine.”

Dr. Narvaez is an assistant professor of Kinesiology and chair of the Department of Allied Health and Kinesiology programs. During the 10-week program he will be hosted by Dr. Bijan Najafi, Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Arizona.

“There is still a lot of research to be done with injuries in collegiate athletes,” said Dr. Narvaez. “There is more understanding needed and that understanding may help us reduce the effect of injury related factors. Changes in equipment and even the type of floors in gymnasiums have been derived from research studies.”

The debate has been growing on the responsibility of organizations like the N.C.A.A. in handling college athlete injuries. In recent years, student-athletes have sought legal action in an effort to seek compensation for injuries.

For Dr. Narvaez, understanding what leads to an injury will help reduce the amount of injuries for student-athletes.

“Changes in equipment have occurred as we understand how students become injured,” said Dr. Narvaez. “Think of the evolution of the basketball shoe. We now have different types of design for mobility of players.”

Researchers plan to publish a study of their findings following the summer sabbatical.

The BUILDing SCHOLARS program is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and is organized by UTEP and partner institutions.