معرفی
Associate Professor Natalie Collins is an APA Sports & Exercise Physiotherapist and researcher at The University of Queensland's School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences within the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences. She serves as an Affiliate of the Centre for Innovation in Pain and Health Research (CIPHeR) and maintains an active clinical role specializing in knee pain management. With over 100 peer-reviewed publications and more than $4 million in competitive funding, her work bridges research and clinical practice.
Dr. Collins earned her Bachelor (Honours) and PhD from The University of Queensland. Her research focuses on knee pain conditions across the lifespan, particularly patellofemoral pain and osteoarthritis. She has conducted large-scale studies including randomized clinical trials and a 5-year longitudinal cohort on early osteoarthritis in young adults. Her work on foot orthoses mechanisms has directly influenced clinical guidelines, establishing these interventions as recommended treatments for patellofemoral pain.
Analysis of her recent publications reveals consistent focus on patellofemoral joint biomechanics, osteoarthritis diagnostics, and innovative treatment approaches. Her work spans clinical trials, systematic reviews, methodological developments, and implementation science, with increasing emphasis on adolescent knee conditions and sex/gender differences in knee pathology.
- NHMRC Fellowship (2010-2014) for Mechanical Engineering research at University of Melbourne
- UQ Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (2015-2018)
- UQ Early Career Researcher Fellowship (2016-2017)
- Chair of Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI) Engagement Committee
- Contributor to Brukner and Khan's Clinical Sports Medicine
Dr. Collins supervises numerous PhD candidates focusing on adolescent kneecap pain, intrinsic foot muscle function, and Osgood-Schlatter Disease. Her current grants include the ACTIVE KNEECAPs! project (2022-2028) funded by NHMRC MRFF, and a 2025 pilot trial on foot orthoses for ankle osteoarthritis. She leads implementation research for GLA:D® (Good Life with osteoArthritis from Denmark) in Australian public hospitals and collaborates internationally on MuscleMap, an open-source MRI consortium.
Her research team integrates biomechanics, clinical assessment, and patient-centered outcomes to develop evidence-based interventions. Current projects explore footwear interventions for adolescents with patellofemoral pain, intrinsic foot muscle function, and sex-specific approaches to knee osteoarthritis management.
