Rate My Professor Leanda McKenna

Dr Leanda McKenna is a physiotherapist, researcher, and educator at Curtin University within the Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin School of Allied Health. She currently serves as Course Coordinator for the Doctor of Physiotherapy program. McKenna earned her Bachelor of Applied Science in Physiotherapy from Curtin University in 1990, followed by a Masters in Sports Physiotherapy and a PhD in 2012. Her doctoral thesis investigated the clinical characterisation of scapular and humeral head position for predicting shoulder pain in adolescent swimmers. Upon graduation, she began her career in clinical physiotherapy at public hospitals and private practices. In 2000, she joined Curtin University as an academic staff member, balancing teaching and research with ongoing private clinical practice. As a member of the Australian Physiotherapy Association, McKenna contributes to professional education and clinical guidelines.

McKenna's research focuses on shoulder pain mechanisms, including scapular dyskinesis, acromiohumeral distance, and predictive factors in athletes and adolescents; women's health topics such as upper back pain related to breast size in postmenopausal women, mastitis interventions by physiotherapists, and therapeutic ultrasound effects on breastmilk; sports injuries; sleep posture and spinal symptoms; anthropometric measurements; and reliability of clinical tools. Key publications include the systematic review and meta-analysis 'Scapular dyskinesis increases the risk of future shoulder pain by 43% in asymptomatic athletes' (Hickey et al., 2018); 'Scapular focused interventions to improve shoulder pain and function in adults with subacromial pain' (Saito et al., 2018); 'No relationship between the acromiohumeral distance and pain in adults with subacromial pain syndrome' (Park et al., 2020); 'Can scapular and humeral head position predict shoulder pain in adolescent swimmers and non-swimmers?' (McKenna, Straker, Smith, 2012); 'The relationship between breast size and aspects of health and psychological wellbeing in mature-aged women' (Spencer et al., 2020); and 'Upper back pain in postmenopausal women and associated physical characteristics' (Spencer et al., 2019). Her work has garnered substantial citations, advancing physiotherapy assessment and intervention strategies in musculoskeletal and women's health domains.