Cardiff School of Healthcare Studies

Research Interests

Spinal pain

• Spinal pain and dysfunction, including neuromuscular control of muscles, muscle imbalance in spinal pain, disc degeneration and the resultant motor control dysfunction; the effect of spinal surgery on lumbar multifidus; differences between lumbar and thoracic spinal control; movement patterns in patients with disc degeneration; 
  • Key Projects: The effect of neuromuscular control training on spinal repositioning; The effect of spinal repositioning during walking on back pain.
• Rehabilitation of back pain patients which include motor control training involving proprioceptive training, spinal stabilisation exercises, cognitive behavioural approaches. The effectiveness of rehabilitation programmes on recovery following spinal surgery.
• Postural control in sitting combined with the effect of fatigue on neuromuscular control and spinal posture.
• Gait analysis in Spinal disorders

Classification of back pain

• The effect of neuromuscular training on specific sub groups in patients with low back pain.

Sports injuries

• The effect of bowling technique/ bowling load on spinal injures.
• The effect of fatigue on spinal curvature and muscle activity during rowing on an ergometer.
• The effect of spinal stabilisation exercises on transversus abdominus an multifidus in rugby players.

Differential diagnosis of pain

• The thoracic spine as a source of pain.
• Differential diagnosis of abdominal pain from musculoskeletal pain.