Rebekah Lawrence, PT, PhD
shoulder mechanics, pathology, and function with focus on rehabilitation
- Email: r.lawrence@nospam.wustl.edu
Assistant Professor
Physical Therapy and Orthopaedic Surgery
Keywords:
shoulder mechanics, pathology, and function with focus on rehabilitation
Research:
We are dedicated to improving the quality of life for individuals with shoulder pain and those who have undergone rotator cuff repair surgery.
Our research is centered on the premise that clinicians cannot effectively treat patients without understanding the unique factors contributing to each individual’s condition. Shoulder conditions often prove especially challenging to treat because the shoulder is a complex system consisting of three joints and approximately 20 muscles that must work together to produce the motion needed for functional, occupational, and recreational activities. In particular, the rotator cuff – a group of four key shoulder muscles – is essential to shoulder health because it contributes to joint stability in ways that are not yet fully understood. Unfortunately, rotator cuff pathology is common and often leads to considerable shoulder pain and disability, which can persist even after surgical repair of a torn rotator cuff. As rehabilitation researchers, we approach these clinical challenges by investigating the movement-related factors associated with shoulder pathology, symptom manifestation, and functional decline. Ultimately, our primary goals are to:
- Develop targeted prevention and treatment strategies for individuals with shoulder pain by understanding the modifiable biomechanical factors contributing to rotator cuff pathology.
- Develop patient-specific rehabilitation guidelines for individuals after rotator cuff repair by understanding the patient, tissue, and rehabilitation factors that affect repair integrity and functional outcomes.
Our approach is to conduct rigorous, clinically relevant research that integrates clinical assessment, diagnostic imaging, and state-of-the-art methods of assessing the human movement system with the passion and expertise of a multi-disciplinary research team.