Jan Taeymans

Jan Taeymans is a Professor at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) in the Faculty of Physical Education and Physical Therapy, Department of Movement and Sport Sciences. His research focuses on musculoskeletal disorders, health economics, and systematic reviews. He has supervised multiple theses, including a doctoral thesis on long-term health-related fitness determinants and a master’s thesis on urinary incontinence costs. His recent work includes studies on pain-intensity correlations in low back pain patients, economic evaluations of lifestyle interventions, and hip instability analysis. He has received a national/international honor for contributions to academic pedagogy innovation.

Research Interests: Taeymans’ research spans systematic reviews, meta-analyses, musculoskeletal health economics, and intervention efficacy. He explores topics like body composition in chronic pain, cost-benefit analyses for weight reduction therapies, and hip pathology mechanisms.

Academic Contributions: With over 100 research outputs, Taeymans’ work bridges clinical practice and public health. His 2025 articles emphasize interdisciplinary approaches to chronic pain and obesity management. Recent projects include a lifestyle intervention study for low back pain sufferers and a menstrual cycle body composition analysis.

Awards:

• National/international honour (2021) for advancing heutagogical teaching methods in academia.

Collaborations & Grants: Taeymans advises on ethical reviews for clinical trials (e.g., GLA:D interventions, menstrual cycle studies) and co-leads health economic evaluations at Bern University of Applied Sciences. His grants fund studies on musculoskeletal conditions and lifestyle interventions.

Labs/Teams: His work integrates with VUB’s Movement and Nutrition for Health and Performance team, focusing on translational research linking physical activity to musculoskeletal health outcomes.