Dr Bradley Neal

Profile

ORCID iD: 0000-0003-0651-3758

Dr Neal completed his MSc at the University of Hertfordshire in 2011, followed by his PhD in 2019 within Sports & Exercise Medicine at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). Currently, he is a Specialist Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist and Head of Research at Pure Sports Medicine, London’s leading private Sports Medicine clinic, alongside his post as a Research Fellow post at QMUL.

He has published in several leading peer-reviewed journals in his field, including the British Journal of Sports Medicine, Gait & Posture and Physical Therapy in Sport. His main research interests are in Patellofemoral Pain and other knee pathologies, biomechanics, running-related injury and the epidemiology of musculoskeletal conditions. Educationally, he has a particular interest in research methods, biomechanics & rehabilitation and student research projects, contributing to the delivery of both the intercalated BSc and MSc in Sports & Exercise Medicine. He has a developing role in the supervision of PhD candidates and currently has a strong interest in the successful remote supervision of research students.       

Research

Group members

Within the Centre of Sports and Exercise Medicine I am very fortunate to work alongside some fantastic colleagues. This team includes:

Professor Dylan Morrissey, Dr Bradley Neal, Dr Stuart Miller, Dr Katrine Kryger, Dr Manuela Angioi, Dr Nikos Malliaropoulos, Mr Trevor Prior, Dr Nat Padhiar.

Summary

Following on from my PhD, my key research interests can be summarised as increasing the understanding why pathologies develop, why they persist and how best to treat them. My focus when designing projects to answers these questions is to ensure the clinical applicability of future outputs. To date, hypotheses have been explored using systematic review and meta-analysis, empirical biomechanical laboratory data, longitudinal clinical data and qualitative interviews.

Key Publications

• Davis, I. S., Tenforde, A. S., Neal, B. S., Roper, J. L., & Willy, R. W., Gait Retraining as an Intervention for Patellofemoral Pain, (2020) Current Reviews in Musculoskeletal Medicine, 13 (1), pp. 103-114. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12178-020-09605-3
• Neal, B. S., Lack, S. D., Barton, C. J., Birn-Jeffery, A., Miller, S., & Morrissey, D., Is markerless, smart phone recorded two-dimensional video a clinically useful measure of relevant lower limb kinematics in runners with patellofemoral pain? A validity and reliability study, (2020) Physical Therapy in Sport, 43, pp. 36-42, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ptsp.2020.02.004
• Bartholomew, C., Lack, S., & Neal, B., Altered pain processing and sensitisation is evident in adults with patellofemoral pain: a systematic review including meta-analysis and meta-regression, (2019) Scandinavian Journal of Pain, 20 (1), pp. 11-27. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/sjpain-2019-0079
• Neal, B.S., Barton, C.J., Birn-Jeffery, A., Morrissey, D., Increased hip adduction during running is associated with patellofemoral pain and differs between males and females: A case-control study, (2019) Journal of Biomechanics, 91, pp. 133-139, DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2019.05.014
• Neal, B.S., Lack, S.D., Lankhorst, N.E., Raye, A., Morrissey, D., Van Middelkoop, M., Risk factors for patellofemoral pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis, (2019) British Journal of Sports Medicine, 53 (5), pp. 270-281. DOI: 10.1136/bjsports-2017-098890
• Lack, S., Neal, B., Silva, D. D. O., & Barton, C., How to manage patellofemoral pain–Understanding the multifactorial nature and treatment options, (2018) Physical Therapy in Sport, 32, 155-166. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ptsp.2018.04.010
• Neal, B. S., Barton, C. J., Birn-Jeffrey, A., Daley, M., & Morrissey, D., The effects & mechanisms of increasing running step rate: A feasibility study in a mixed-sex group of runners with patellofemoral pain, (2018) Physical Therapy in Sport, 32, pp. 244-251.
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ptsp.2018.05.018
• Neal, B. S., Barton, C. J., Gallie, R., O’Halloran, P., & Morrissey, D., Runners with patellofemoral pain have altered biomechanics which targeted interventions can modify: A systematic review and meta-analysis, (2016) Gait & posture, 45, pp 69-82. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gaitpost.2015.11.018
• Barton, C. J., Bonanno, D. R., Carr, J., Neal, B. S., Malliaras, P., Franklyn-Miller, A., & Menz, H. B., Running retraining to treat lower limb injuries: a mixed-methods study of current evidence synthesised with expert opinion, (2016) British Journal of Sports Medicine, 50 (9), pp. 513-526. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2015-095278
• Neal, B. S., Griffiths, I. B., Dowling, G. J., Murley, G. S., Munteanu, S. E., Smith, M. M. F., & Barton, C. J., Foot posture as a risk factor for lower limb overuse injury: a systematic review and meta-analysis, (2014) Journal of Foot and Ankle Research, 7 (1), pp. 1-13. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13047-014-0055-4
• Dowling, G. J., Murley, G. S., Munteanu, S. E., Smith, M. M. F., Neal, B. S., Griffiths, I. B., & Collins, N. J., Dynamic foot function as a risk factor for lower limb overuse injury: a systematic review, (2014) Journal of Foot and Ankle Research, 7 (1), pp. 1-13. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13047-014-0053-6

Collaborators

• Dr Christian Barton, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia.
• Professor Michael Rathleff, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark.
• Professor Irene Davis, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
• Associate Professor Richard Willy, University of Montana, USA.  

News

• Physio Edge Podcast (Australia)
• MACP Podcast (UK)
• Physio Matters Podcast (UK)