Dr. Bjornson's research is concerned with evidence-based clinical interventions to improve the activity and community-based mobility participation of persons with cerebral palsy and physical disabilities. A related interest is to develop a methodology to enable rigorous testing of the effectiveness of various current and emerging treatments (e.g., orthotics, physical activity/exercise, and physical therapy timing and frequency) on relevant outcomes (e.g., ambulatory and physical activity, participation in daily life).
Dr. Bjornson's current research focuses on ambulatory children and youth with cerebral palsy. This work is examining short-burst interval treadmill training and home-based toddler treadmill training for pre-ambulatory toddlers. Our research team is also testing an orthotic management algorithm based on lower extremity segment alignment through combing the orthotic with shoe modifications to optimize roll over during stance phase of gait.