The Musculoskeletal health and mobility group focuses on the integration of exercise and nutritional approaches for the primary and secondary prevention of musculoskeletal-related conditions throughout the life course.
Our group has specific expertise in conducting large-scale human clinical intervention trials and translational studies, particularly in the areas of osteoporosis, sarcopenia, falls and fractures, musculoskeletal pain and spinal health. There is also a strong focus on 1) the prevention and management of musculoskeletal-related complications associated with other chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, kidney disease, certain types of cancer and cognitive related disorders and 2) optimising the management of primary musculoskeletal pain and subsequent disability.
In terms of translational activities, our group has experience and expertise in conducting ‘research to practice’ trials and evaluating their effectiveness within the community. Our group actively engages with medical practitioners, specialists, allied health professionals, hospitals and industry – to inform policy, practice and clinical guidelines.
This group covers:
- Understanding the independent and combined effects of exercise and nutrition on musculoskeletal health and mobility across the lifespan
- Exploring the mechanisms of musculoskeletal disease causation to guide the development of more effective and/or novel interventions
- Designing and evaluating human clinical intervention trials to understand primary and secondary prevention of musculoskeletal related conditions, that will provide high-level evidence to inform policy, practice and clinical guidelines
- Exploring the role of health technologies to aid the prescription of evidence-based exercise programs for healthy older adults and those with musculoskeletal-related conditions
- Developing novel methodologies for assessing various musculoskeletal-related tissues (bone, body composition, cartilage, intervertebral disc, marrow adipose tissue).