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News Releases
MARRTC Investigator Wins
Lifetime Achievement Award
Researcher Marian Minor, P.T., Ph.D., from the Missouri Arthritis Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (MARRTC), received the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals (ARHP), the highest honor bestowed by the organization. The award was presented this month during a ceremony in Boston, at the annual scientific meeting of the American College of Rheumatology.
Minor is a professor and chair of Physical Therapy in the MU School of Health Professions, and director of Research and Graduate Studies. Minor's groundbreaking research on arthritis and exercise revolutionized the treatment and management of arthritis by proving exercise lessened the impact of the disease.
"She was one of the research pioneers to show the benefits of exercise to persons with arthritis," says Richard E Oliver, Ph.D., dean, University of Missouri-Columbia School of Health Professions. "Dr. Minor's work is recognized internationally and many researchers have followed in her footsteps to replicate her cutting edge research protocols."
Minor is the principal investigator of a current study researching exercise and physical fitness for persons with knee osteoarthritis. She is studying the effects of different kinds of exercise on improving strength, cardiovascular fitness and function for people with osteoarthritis of the knee. The project also looks at types of exercise that are particularly beneficial for different people in order to make the best individually tailored exercise recommendations.
"Dr. Minor has had a tremendous impact on the way arthritis is approached from a rehabilitation standpoint," says Jerry C. Parker, Ph.D., associate dean for Clinical Research and Development, clinical professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the MU School of Medicine. "She has been at the forefront of research on the benefits of exercise for persons with arthritis. Her work has made an enormous contribution to the quality-of-life for individuals with arthritis who have regained functional status through the use of appropriate exercise strategies. Dr. Minor's scholarly leadership in this area has been exceptional."
Minor has also been the recipient of the Arthritis Foundation's National Service Citation, the Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals Merit Award for Outstanding Scholarship, the Governor's Fitness and Health Leadership Award from the State of Missouri, and the AF Engalitcheff Award for the Impact on Quality of Life. She has served as President of the Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals and as the Chair of the Missouri Arthritis Advisory Board.
For more information about Minor's current study on osteoarthritis of the knee, visit http://www.marrtc.org/research/projects/proj2.html.
The Missouri Arthritis Research Rehabilitation and Training Center (MARRTC) was established in 1971 at the University of Missouri-Columbia Arthritis Center. MARRTC is funded by the U.S. Department of Education's National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (H133B031120) and is the only federally funded arthritis rehabilitation research and training center in the country.
As part of the MU Health Communication Research Center (HCRC), MARRTC's mission is to become a national leader in the areas of disability management and communication, improve the quality of life and promote independent living among people who have arthritis and arthritic conditions. MARRTC's core message is "Disability is everyone's issue."
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