Department of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Science Grand Rounds

The Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science hosts bimonthly Grand Rounds that is open to all clinicians and researchers interested in the topic of rehabilitation. Presentations are held every other month from 7am to 8am via zoom (registration is not required.)

Tuesday, December 9, 2025 7-8am PST

Dr. Catherine Lang, PT, PhD, FASNR, FAPTA

From Motion to Meaning: Empowering Neurorehabilitation Across the Lifespan via Wearable Sensing

For our next session, we have invited Catherine Lang, PT, PhD, FASNR, FAPTA who will discuss how wearable movement sensors can be used to measure motor behavior and activity in daily life, and how this tool has yielded surprising findings in people with stroke and other neurological conditions. Additionally, we will discuss emerging wearable sensor inquiries into pediatric motor behavior, and current efforts to move this tool from the research realm into the clinical realm.

Dr. Catherine Lang, PT, PhD, FASNR, FAPTA is the Barbara J. Norton Professor of Physical Therapy, Professor of Occupational Therapy and Neurology, and Associate Director for the Movement Science PhD Program at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis MO, USA. She received physical therapy degrees from the University of Vermont in 1993 (BS) and 1997 (MS), her PhD in Movement Science from Washington University in 2001 and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Rochester between 2001 and 2004. Her accomplishments have earned her the title of fellow for both the American Society for NeuroRehabilitation (ASNR) and the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA).

The overarching goal of her work is to improve rehabilitation services and outcomes for people with neurological and neurodevelopmental conditions. Numerous studies have focused on characterizing neurobehavioral changes over the course of stroke recovery, developing new and optimizing current motor interventions, and improving clinical practice. Her group has been working in the wearable movement sensor space for more than 15 years, deploying devices to capture activity in daily life. The interdisciplinary, interactive laboratory environment promotes collaborations within and outside the lab with engineers, scientists, and clinicians, resulting in a productive research program. She provides research training to PhD students, postdocs, and junior faculty members. Continuous funding from the NIH has supported her research efforts since 2005.

WUSM profile: https://profiles.wustl.edu/en/persons/catherine-lang
Google scholar link: https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=l7qq2QIAAAAJ

This session will be recorded and uploaded here. Session Moderated by Rich Souza & Cathy Hoang (meeting ID: 996 0725 4951; passcode: 214403). join us via zoom here!

Upcoming 2026 Speakers

To be announced soon!

Eligibility to present at Grand Rounds:

People with relevant expertise in Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science are eligible for this program.
This includes but is not limited to colleagues, peers, speakers from all professional levels (Junior-Senior investigators, Assistant Professors, Professors), research, clinical, basic science, etc. within UCSF or outside of UCSF.
If you have suggestions for topics to discuss or an interest in speaking at an upcoming Grand Rounds session, please contact Dr. Cathy Hoang at [email protected].

UCSF does not use race, gender, sex, or other protected categories or proxies for protected categories in the selection process.

Recent Grand Rounds Talks:

If you missed one of our recent Grand Rounds discussions, please check out the recordings linked below!