On this episode we are joined by Aviva Wolff, EdD, OT, CHT who has taken a special interest in working with injured musicians. She has had the opportunity to work with musicians of all skill levels who play all types of musical instruments. We discuss the unique characteristics of musicians and the types of injuries they sustain as well as the importance of a thorough assessment to fully understand their craft.

Aviva references two articles she authored, and the links are below:

Return to Play Guide Following Injury:

https://www.musichandstherapy.com/return-to-play/2021/9/30/return-to-play-guide-following-injury

Source: http://www.musichandstherapy.com/

A Musician-centered Approach to Management of Performance-related Upper Musculoskeletal Injuries

https://www.jhandtherapy.org/article/S0894-1130(21)00053-3/fulltext

Source: http://www.jhandtherapy.org/

Guest Bio:

Aviva Wolff, EdD, OT, CHT is an occupational therapist and clinician-scientist with a strong background in motor control and movement analysis and extensive experience working with performing artists and individuals with musculoskeletal injuries. She currently consults for the Julliard School and runs the upper extremity clinical movement analysis programs and hand and wrist biomechanics research at the Leon Root, MD Motion Analysis Laboratory at Hospital for Special Surgery.

Her research interest is the prevention and treatment of musculoskeletal occupational overuse injuries through personalized approaches that are patient and occupation centered. She utilizes quantitative and qualitative analysis of upper extremity movement dysfunction to generate data to better inform surgery therapy and performance. Her passion project is to promote musculoskeletal health and wellness through formalized education programs to avoid musculoskeletal occupational overuse injuries in musicians.

Her research has focused on upper extremity injury prevention in musicians, wrist biomechanics and function, elbow biomechanics and function, hand and arm function in brachial plexus injury and cerebral palsy. She has independently led and collaborated with orthopedic surgeons, scientists, and biomechanists on several funded studies that have led to multiple presentations and publications.

Dr. Wolff has served in various leadership capacities in multiple professional organizations.