Cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, and knee function are among the areas of research to be funded in the latest round of Foundation for Physical Therapy Research grants. Six grants, worth a combined $360,000, were awarded to research projects that "pioneer new treatments, show the efficacy of existing treatments, and define the value of physical therapy services for patients, payers, and providers," according to an FPTR news release.
APTA is FPTR's Pinnacle Partner in Research and has been a leading donor in funding major research initiatives such as the Center on Health Services Training and Research, investing in research priorities to strengthen the physical therapy profession, and supporting the foundation's scholarship program each year.
This year's grant recipients:
Benjamin Binder-Markey, PT, DPT, PhD, recipient of the $40,000 Duesinger Grant, will research the effectiveness of an intervention to prevent muscle stiffness related to botulinum neurotoxin injections. The grant is supported through the Deusinger Family Endowment Fund.
Mitchell Selhorst, PT, DPT, PhD, was awarded the $100,000 Magistro Family Foundation Research Grant. The title of his project, supported through the Magistro Family Foundation Endowment Fund, is "Psychologically Informed Education intervention for Adolescents With Atraumatic Lower Extremity Injuries."
Joshua Stefanik, PT, MSPT, PhD, winner of the $40,000 Orthopaedic Research Grant, will investigate the relationship of walking cadence to knee joint loading, pain, and function. Funding was made possible through the APTA Academy of Orthopaedic Physical Therapy Fund Endowment.
Sarah Blanton, PT, DPT, PhD, was awarded the $100,000 Paris Patla Physical Therapy Research Grant in support of a project that will evaluate a care partner-integrated telehealth gait rehabilitation program for persons with stroke. Funding was made possible by the Paris Patla Endowment Fund.
Alison Barnard, PT, DPT, PhD, received the $40,000 Pediatric Research Grant for a study titled "Contracture Pathophysiology in Muscular Dystrophy," with funding made possible by the Pediatric Research Fund.
Brad Corr, PT, DPT, who was awarded the $40,000 Foundation Research Grant, will be investigating therapeutic power training for adolescents and adults with cerebral palsy. This grant is supported by the APTA Support the Profession Fund, with the award being named in honor of the 2021 VCU-Marquette challenge.
"Physical therapy research is critical to the future of the profession, and thanks to the support of our dedicated donors, FPTR is able to continue funding research and promising researchers that improve patient outcomes, improve treatments, and advance the profession," said FPTR President Paul A. Rockar Jr., PT, DPT, MS, FAPTA. "The research funded by these grants will provide evidence that will improve care for patients that physical therapists serve every day."
