Research

A person is lying on a platform with their feet against a board
INMOTION 03 Oct, 2022

From elite athletes to astronauts

Canberra researcher Professor Gordon Waddington has applied his research into proprioception and movement control to a diverse range of uses, from high performance sport to space

When part of the musculoskeletal system is injured, the brain changes to accommodate the injury by creating new movement pathways. 

It’s an ability that spans neurology, psychology and human performance.

A group of gowned university graduates look at the camera and smile.
INMOTION 03 Oct, 2022

Registering as a physiotherapist in Australia

Are you about to graduate, about to start practising or returning to practice? Here are some tips for ensuring that the registration process goes smoothly.

Before you start practising and using the title of physiotherapist, you must be registered with the Physiotherapy Board of Australia via Ahpra.

Two half full bowls of water sitting side by side.
INMOTION 03 Oct, 2022

Terminology and health literacy

APA General Manager, Policy and Government Relations Simon Tatz considers what ‘allied health’ means to consumers struggling to navigate our complex health system.

Semantics is the scientific study of meaning as expressed in language. It describes how language is used, often in advertising and politics, to have a desired effect on an audience.

More commonly, when we hear someone say, ‘Oh, that’s just being semantic’, what they’re implying is that there’s a trivial debate about word use, that someone is ‘splitting hairs’ or nitpicking.

An illustration of people wearing pink and blue tops.
INMOTION 03 Oct, 2022

Chest binding and physiotherapy

Holly Shuttleworth (they/them) of the APA’s LGBTQIA+ Advisory Panel explains what physiotherapists need to know to treat chest-binding clients.

What is binding and why do people do it?

Binding is a process of using garments to compress chest tissue to create a flatter appearance.

It is typically practised by transgender men and non-binary individuals assigned female at birth (also known as AFAB), but may be practised by anyone who wants to bind.

Binding can serve a number of purposes, including: 

A view of the Kimberley region from the top of a cliff.
INMOTION 03 Oct, 2022

A lifetime of caring will know no end

As he celebrates his retirement this month after a 40-year physiotherapy career in public health, John Buchanan is ready for the next phase. John speaks about his love for the
physiotherapy profession and the behind-the-scenes project that he will now reveal.

Good fortune has followed John Buchanan throughout his life and career and he believes he has much to be thankful for.

A woman explains something to a group of women, who sit listening.
INMOTION 01 Sep, 2022

Group-based training for urinary incontinence

Chantale Dumoulin is a Canadian physiotherapist who published the GROUP Trial, which compared standard individual (one-on-one) with group-based pelvic floor muscle training (one physiotherapist for eight patients) for the treatment of stress and mixed urinary incontinence in older women. Dr Licia Cacciari is a postdoctoral student at the University of Montreal under the supervision of Chantale Dumoulin. She was the lead author on an economic evaluation of the GROUP trial in Journal of Physiotherapy.

Purple and blue graphic of a pair of lungs.
INMOTION 01 Sep, 2022

Interstitial lung disease management

Professor Anne Holland published an Invited Topical Review on physiotherapy management of interstitial lung disease in the current issue of Journal of Physiotherapy. Here, she answers questions about the content of the review.

What is interstitial lung disease?

Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is an umbrella term that refers to over 200 different lung conditions characterised by inflammation and/or scarring of the lung tissue.

A physio guides a patient doing an arm exercise.
INMOTION 01 Sep, 2022

Designing a learning resource for long COVID

Respondents are sought for a survey to identify what physiotherapists need to know about managing patients with post-COVID syndrome or long COVID.

A research collaboration funded by the Pat Cosh Trust between St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, Western Health, Alfred Health and Monash University is conducting a survey that will be used to develop a physiotherapy-specific learning resource for clinicians managing patients presenting with post-COVID syndrome, also known as long COVID.

Graphic image of a brain sparkling electrically in an outlined head.
INMOTION 01 Sep, 2022

Physiotherapy and central vestibulopathy

Katrina Williams and Christina Cooper from the APA Neurology national group present five discussion points about central vestibulopathy and vestibular rehabilitation treatment options for physiotherapists.

Women of all body shapes and sizes standing in a row.
INMOTION 01 Sep, 2022

Diagnosing lipoedema

There is research underway at the University of Sydney that aims to improve the diagnosis and assessment of lipoedema.

Lipoedema is a complex genetic condition, occurring in up to 11 per cent of women.

It’s characterised by a disproportionate accumulation of nodular painful fat in the lower body—the legs and the buttocks—and variable amounts of swelling, resulting in poor mobility and quality of life.