Dr Kostas Papadopoulos

Teaching Interests

Teaching Philosophy
My approach to teaching is rooted in problem-based learning, where real-world scenarios challenge students to actively engage, collaborate, and think critically. By navigating complex problems, learners develop not only subject knowledge but also the confidence and adaptability essential for modern healthcare practice.

Conference Engagement
I was proud to contribute to the 19th Annual Teaching and Learning Conference (London, UK – 6 Sept 2019), themed Learning for Life: Meaningful Assessment for the Changing World of Tomorrow. My oral presentation, “Game-based learning as a platform for formative assessment in Higher Education,” explored innovative strategies that enhance student engagement and deepen formative feedback through interactive methodologies.

Teaching Specialisms and Professional Interests

• Knee Pain & Musculoskeletal Disorders
• Anatomy, Pathophysiology & Functional Kinesiology
• Kinesiotherapy & Sports Physiotherapy
• Research Design & Methodology in Healthcare

Research Interests

Research profile

I am a research-active physiotherapist and Co-Lead of the Living Well with Long-Term Conditions (LWLTC) research group at the University of Worcester. My work is driven by a commitment to improving clinical outcomes through evidence-based practice and interdisciplinary collaboration.

With a robust portfolio of projects conducted across NHS clinical settings, I hold over seven years’ experience as an NHS Honorary Researcher—working between academia and healthcare delivery to ensure that research insights lead to meaningful, real-world impact.

Areas of Focus and Expertise

• Musculoskeletal health, with a particular focus on upper and lower limb disorders
• Advanced clinical expertise in patellofemoral pain syndrome, including assessment, treatment, and rehabilitation innovations
• Design, cultural adaptation, and validation of outcome measures for lower limb assessment
• Biomechanics and movement science, including motion analysis and the application of dynamometry
• Skilled in conducting and supervising research using qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods designs to drive innovation and inform best practice

Membership of Professional Bodies

• Member of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (MCSP number 052997)
• Health and Care Professions Council registered (PH114482)
• Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA)

Recent Publications

• Cooper C, Papadopoulos K. (2025) " Evaluating Pacing Therapy (PT) versus Graded Exercise Therapy (GET) for improving fatigue, pain and quality of life in adults with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS): A Systematic Review." Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies. 44:319-327,https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbmt.2025.05.048
• Maestroni L, Turner A, Papadopoulos K, Sideris V, Read P. (2023) "Total Score of Athleticism: profiling strength and power characteristics in professional soccer players following Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction to assess return to sport readiness" Am J Sports Med. 51(12):3121-3130.
• Maestroni L, Turner A, Papadopoulos K, Sideris V, Read P. (2023) "Single leg drop jump is affected by physical capacities in male soccer players following ACL reconstruction" Sci Med Footb. 20:1-11.
• Maestroni K, Turner A, Papadopoulos K, Cohen D, Sideris V, Graham-Smith P, Read P. (2023) "A comparison of strength and power characteristics prior to anterior cruciate ligament rupture and at the end of rehabilitation prior to return to sport in professional soccer players" Sports Health. 19:19417381231171566.
• Otsuka S, Papadopoulos K, Bampouras T, Maestroni L (2022) "What is the effect of ankle disk training and taping on proprioception deficit after lateral ankle sprains among active populations? – A systematic review". Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies
• Bampouras T, Papadopoulos K. (2021) "Upper limb muscle strength and knee frontal plane projection angle asymmetries in female water-polo players". Sports Biomechanics, 4:1-12.
• Maestroni L, Turner A, Papadopoulos K, Korakakis V, Read P. (2021) "Relationships between physical capacities and biomechanical variables during movement tasks in athletic populations following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction". Physical Therapy in Sport, 48:209-218
• Maestroni L, Papadopoulos K, Korakakis V, Turner A, Read P. (2020) ‘Strength, rate of force development, power and reactive strength in adult male athletic populations post anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction - A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis’. Physical Therapy in Sport 47:91-104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ptsp.2020.11.024 .
• Maestroni L, Read P, Bishop C, Papadopoulos K, Suchomel, T, Comfort P and Turner A. (2020) ‘The benefits of strength training on musculoskeletal system health: practical applications for interdisciplinary care’. Sports Medicine1007/s40279-020-01309-5 (Springer)
• J Guy, K.Papadopoulos (2020) ‘The impact of kinesiology tape application on the volume of interstitial space over the gastrocnemius within healthy mixed-gender participants using ultrasonography’ Trends in Medicine 20:1-5.
• Athanasiadis, K.Papadopoulos (2019) ‘‘Comparison of proprioception between Kinesiology and Adhesive Ankle Taping: A Randomised Experimental Study‘‘ Journal of Novel Physiotherapies 9:1
• Mamais, K.Papadopoulos, D. Lamnisos, Stasinopoulos (2018) ‘‘Effectiveness of Low Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) in the treatment of Lateral elbow tendinopathy (LET): an umbrella review '' Journal of Laser Therapy, 27(3)
• Bishop, J. Lake, I. Loturco, K. Papadopoulos, A. N. Turner, P. Read. ‘‘Inter-limb Asymmetries: The Need for an Individual Approach to Data Analysis‘‘(2018) The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research,
• Aune, C. Bishop, A .N. Turner, Papadopoulos, S. Budd, M.Richardson, S. Malone. ‘‘Acute and chronic effects of foam rolling vs eccentric exercise on ROM and force output of the plantar flexors‘‘ (2018) Journal of Sports Sciences
• Papadopoulos. ‘‘A Model of Applied Physiotherapy in Patellofemoral Pain‘‘ (2018) Primary Health Care: Open Access. 8:1.
• D. Papadopoulos, R.Kabir, D. Stasinopoulos. ‘Perceptions of physiotherapists of their role in reducing pain and increasing function, strength and flexibility in patients with PFPS’ (2017) Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation 4(9):1-14.
• M.Y. Arafat, R. Kabir, A. Al Masud, K. Papadopoulos, S. M. I. Alam, R. Sultana, S. Ahmed. ‘Health problems and health care seeking behaviour of Rohingya Refugees’ (2017) Journal of medical Research and Innovation 1 (1): 21-29.
• D. Papadopoulos, R. Kabir. ‘Physiotherapy effectiveness on muscle strength, flexibility, pain and function in patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome.‘(2016) Journal Of novel Physiotherapy and Physical Rehabilitation 3(1): 035-039
• P. Joshi, R. Kabir, P. Upreti, W.E Lee, K. Papadopoulos, N.Ferdous.‘‘Potential impact and controversy of Stem Cells in Public Health‘‘. (2016) International Journal of Scientific Research in Science, Engineering and Technology, Vol 2: 10-14.
• Stasinopoulos, K. Papadopoulos, D. Lamnisos, A. Stergioulas. ‘LLLT for the management of patients with ankylosing spondylitis. (2016) Lasers in Medical Science, in press DOI: 10.1007/s10103-016-1874-2. First online: 21 January 2016, pp1-11.
• Stasinopoulos, K. Papadopoulos, D. Lamnisos "The use of Bioptron light (polarized, polychromatic, non-coherent) therapy for the treatment of acute ankle sprains". (2016) Disability and Rehabilitation, DOI:10.3109/09638288.2016.1146357. Published online: 04 Mar 2016
• D.Papadopoulos, L. Nardi, M. Antoniadou, A. Constantinou, A.Chimonidou D Stasinopoulos. ‘Greek adaption and validation of the Kujala Anterior Knee Pain Scale in patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome‘(2016) Disability and Rehabilitation Published online Apr 6:1-5.
• D. Papadopoulos, D.Stasinopoulos. ‘Reproducibility of lower strength tests using a portable dynamometer. Measurement comparisons with a non-portable dynamometer’ (2016) International Journal of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation (accepted 22/03/2016) doi: http:// dx.doi.org/10.15344/ijptr/ 2016/112.
• D. Papadopoulos, D. Stasinopoulos, D. Ganchev. ‘A systematic review of systematic reviews of PFPS risk factors, diagnostic tests, outcome measures and exercise treatment, with an analysis of key participant and study characteristics in included primary studies’ (2015) The Open Sports Medicine Journal (Vol 9 pp7-17).
• D. Papadopoulos, J Noyes, J.G. Jones, J.M. Thom, D. Stasinopoulos. ‘Clinical tests for differentiating between patients with patellofemoral pain syndrome and those without’ (2014) Hong Kong Physiotherapy Journal, Vol 32(1) pp35-43 (in the top 5 most downloaded papers of 2014)
• Stasinopoulos, K.D. Papadopoulos, L.Nardi, M.Andoniadou. ‘Greek adoption and validation of the Patient-Related Tennis Elbow Evaluation (PRTEE)’ Journal of Hand Therapy, (2014)
• D. Papadopoulos, J.M. Thom, J Noyes, J.G. Jones, D. Stasinopoulos. ‘The Reliability and Meaningfulness of the Anterior Knee Pain and Lower Extremity Functional Scales in Patellofemoral pain Syndrome’ (2013) The Open Sports Science Journal, Vol 6 pp26-30
• D.Papadopoulos, L. Nardi, M. Antoniadou, D. Stasinopoulos. ‘Greek adoption and validation of the Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome Severity Scale’ (2013) Hong Kong Physiotherapy Journal, Vol 31 pp95-99.
• Stasinopoulos, K.D.Papadopoulos, A. Constantinou.‘Effectiveness of Iontoforesis for lateral elbow tendinopathy‘ (2013) Journal of Novel Physiotherapies, Vol 5 pp2-5
• D. Papadopoulos, J. Noyes, M. Barnes, J.G. Jones, J.M. Thom. ‘How do physiotherapists assess and treat Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome in North Wales? A mixed method study’. (2013) International Journal of Therapy and Rehabilitation, Vol 19 pp261-272. Featured paper of May 2012.

Book Editor

Papadopoulos K, Richardson M (2021) "The Sports Rehabilitation Therapists’ Guidebook" Routledge Oxfordshire, UK.

External Roles

External Examiner roles

• Coventry University - BSc (Hons) in Physiotherapy (Applied)-Health and Life Sciences. Collaborative partner, Aegean Omiros College 2020 - ongoing
• Bradford College - FdSc Physical Activity, Health and Wellbeing, FdSc Sport Coaching & BSc (Hons) Sports and Physical Activity 2017 - 2021
• Buck New University - Professional Practice, Applied Health & Exercise Sciences 2017-2021