Faculty/Staff/PhD

Academic Faculty

brandimore-alexandra

Brandimore, Alexandra E., Ph.D., CCC-SLP

Assistant Professor of Instruction

Phone: 813.974.2732
Office: PCD 3028

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Dr. Alexandra Brandimore, Ph.D. CCC/SLP joined the USF Communication Sciences and Disorders department faculty in May 2017. She completed her doctoral studies at the University of Florida where she also received her Master’s and Undergraduate education. After obtaining her Ph.D in Speech-Language Pathology, Dr. Brandimore completed a post-doctoral fellowship in the Laboratory for Upper Airway Dysfunction within the Department of Biobehavioral Sciences at Teachers College, Columbia University. During her post-doctoral work she established and coordinated the Clinical Research Neurorehabilitation Center at Teacher’s College, served as co-investigator and/or study coordinator for various large-scale NIH and MJ Fox funded projects, and provided mentorship and teaching to Master’s level SLP students. As an academician, Dr. Brandimore interfaces her passions for teaching, research, and clinic. Her primary research goals target the development of evaluative techniques and therapeutic paradigms to improve upper airway dysfunction, primarily dysphagia (disordered swallowing) and dystussia (disordered cough), in persons with neurodegenerative diseases (i.e. Parkinson’s disease). Her clinical work has mainly been in the area of Movement Disorders where she has evaluated and treated the motor speech, voice, AAC, and airway protective needs of hundreds of patients. She has participated in the collaborative, multidisciplinary ALS clinic within the USF Health system to facilitate the complex needs of these patients. Dr. Brandimore has teaching expertise in the areas of: respiratory physiology, cognitive-motor relationships, neural/myogenic adaptations to exercise and training, with emphasis on the swallowing, coughing and respiratory systems, and clinical disorders of motor speech, voice, and airway protection. Dr. Brandimore’s teaching interests include dysphagia, voice disorders, motor speech disorders, speech anatomy and physiology, neuroanatomy, and SLP management of complex movement disorders.

Education
Post-Doctoral Fellowship Teachers College, Columbia University 2016
Ph.D. (Speech-Language Pathology University of Florida 2015
M.A. (Speech-Language Pathology) University of Florida 2011
B.A. (Communication Sciences & Disorders) University of Florida 2009

Teaching

  • Dysphagia (In-class and On-line)
  • Voice Disorders (In-class and On-line)
  • SLP Management of Complex Movement Disorders (In-class and On-line)
  • Motor speech disorders
  • Speech Anatomy & Physiology
  • Respiratory physiology
  • Adult language disorders
  • Neurological basis for communication/Neuroanatomy
  • Research Methods

Recent Scholarly Activity

  • Borders, J., Brandimore, A., & Troche, M. (2020). Variability of voluntary cough airflow in healthy older adults and Parkinson’s disease. Dysphagia. Online ahead of print. 
  • Hegland, K., Troche, M., & Brandimore, A. (2019). Relationship between respiratory sensory perception, speech, and swallow in Parkinson’s disease. Mov Disord Clin Pract. 6 (3), 243-249.
  • Brandimore, A., Hegland, K., Okun, M., Davenport, P., & Troche, M. (2017). Voluntary up-regulation of reflex cough is possible in healthy older adults and Parkinson’s disease. Journal of Applied Physiology.
  • Troche, M., Brandimore, A., Hegland, K., Zeilman, P., Foote, K., & Okun, M. (2016). Tailored deep brain stimulation optimization for improved airway protective outcomes in Parkinson’s disease. Interdisciplinary Neurosurgery, 5, 3-5.
  • Troche, M., Schumann, B., Brandimore, A., Okun, M., & Hegland, K. (2016). Reflex cough and disease duration as predictors of swallowing dysfunction in Parkinson’s disease. Dysphagia, 31(6), 757-64.
  • Hegland, K., Davenport, P., Brandimore, A., Singletary, F., & Troche, M. (2016). Rehabilitation of swallowing and cough functions following stroke: An expiratory muscle strength training trial. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 97(8), 1345-51.
  • Laciuga, H., Brandimore, A., Troche, M., & Hegland, K. (2016). Analysis of clinicians’ perceptual cough evaluation. Dysphagia, 31(4), 521-30.
  • Brandimore, A., Troche, M., Huber, J., & Hegland, K. (2015). Respiratory kinematics of reflex and voluntary cough in healthy adults. Frontiers in Physiology, 9(6).
  • Hegland, K., Troche, M., Brandimore, A., Okun, M., & Davenport, P. (2015). Comparison of two methods for inducing reflex cough in patients with Parkinsn’s disease: implications for neural control and clinical practice. Dysphagia, 31(1), 66-73.
  • Hegland, K., Troche, M., Brandimore, A., Davenport, P., & Okun, M. (2014). Comparison of voluntary and reflex cough effectiveness in Parkinson’s disease. Parkinsonism and Related Disorders, 20(11), page 1266-30.
  • Troche, M., Brandimore, A., Godoy, J., & Hegland, K. (2014). A framework for understanding shared substrates of airway protection. Journal of Applied Oral Science, 22(4), page 251-60.
  • Troche, M., Brandimore, A., Okun, M., Davenport, and Hegland, K. (2014). Decreased cough sensitivity and aspiration in Parkinson’s disease. Chest, 146(5), page 1294-9.
  • Troche, M., Brandimore, A., Foote, K., Morishita, T., Chen, D., Hegland, K., Okun, M. (2014). Swallowing outcomes following unilateral STN vs. GPi Surgery: A retrospective analysis. Dysphagia, 29(4),page 425-31.
  • Troche, M., Brandimore, A., Foote, K., & Okun, M. (2013). Swallowing and deep brain stimulation in Parkinson’s disease: a systematic review. Parkinsonism and Related Disorders, 19(9), page 783-8.
  • Rodriguez, C.S., Troche, M., & Johnson, A. (2012). Communication Needs of Hispanic Patients: Sudden Speechlessness Simulation. Open Communication Journal, 6, page 8.