pht., Ph. D.
Affiliation
Université de Montréal
Research Axes
Team
- Véronique Lowry, pht., PhD candidate
- Simon Lafrance, pht., PhD candidate
- Anthony Demont, pht., PhD candidate
- Amélie Kéchichian, pht., PhD candidate
- Mathieu Lalumière, pht., PhD candidate
- Vincent Raphaël, pht., PhD candidate
- Jean-Gabriel Lapalme, pht,Master's candidate
- Alexandre Hardy, Master's candidate
- Éveline Matifat, pht., M.Sc., Research professional
- Maxime Charron, pht., M.Sc., Research professional
François Desmeules, PT, PhD is a physiotherapist who graduated from Université Laval in 2000 and received his doctorate in epidemiology from Université Laval in 2010. Professor Desmeules worked as a clinician at Quebec university health centres for over ten years.
His research interests include:
- Developing and evaluating new models of physiotherapy, including advanced practices.
- Diagnosing and evaluating rehabilitation, musculoskeletal and orthopedic interventions for shoulder and knee conditions.
- Developing evidence-based practices and synthesizing knowledge in the fields of rehabilitation, musculoskeletal care and orthopedics.
The author of over 80 studies published in various scientific journals, he has been involved in many projects related to professional physiotherapy practice over the years and has acted as an expert, consultant and administrator for multiple organizations and institutions in Quebec and Canada.
Research Unit
Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) are highly widespread in the general population and include atraumatic conditions such as neck and lower back pain, osteoarthritis, or tendinopathies as well as traumatic conditions such as fractures and ligament or tendon injuries.
MSD are the most common cause of long-term pain and physical incapacity and affect hundreds of millions of people around the world. As our Western populations age and become more sedentary, the societal burden of MSD is dramatically increasing. Many studies show that the diagnosis and treatment of MSD is sub-optimal and that these patients have problems getting timely access to care.
The overall goal of our unit’s research program is to improve care and access to care for MSD patients, particularly in the context of traditional physiotherapy or advanced physiotherapy practice as well as in terms of first-line or specialty care such as family medicine, emergency or orthopedics.
Publications
Voir toutes les publications-
Cormier AA, Desmeules F, Dupuis F, Lafrance S, Cote JS, Dube MO, et al. (2025). Efficacy of Therapeutic Patient Education for Managing Subacute and Chronic Musculoskeletal Conditions: A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther, 55(10):1-26.
-
Lafrance S, Budtz CR, Kinnerup MB, Desmeules F, Guertin JR, Madsen MN, et al. (2025). Economic evaluation of advanced practice physiotherapy models of care for upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders in Denmark: a registry-based cohort study. Eur J Health Econ, 2025.
-
Demont A, Vervaeke R, Lafrance S, Desmeules F, Dumas A, Bourmaud A. (2025). Acceptability of physiotherapists as primary care practitioners for the care of people with musculoskeletal disorders: a French population-based cross-sectional survey. Physiotherapy, 126:101453.
-
Desmeules F, Roy JS, Lafrance S, Charron M, Dube MO, Dupuis F, et al. (2025). Rotator Cuff Tendinopathy Diagnosis, Nonsurgical Medical Care, and Rehabilitation: A Clinical Practice Guideline. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther, 55(4):235-274.
-
Lowry V, Desmeules F, Lavigne P, Decary S, Tousignant-Laflamme Y, Martel M, et al. (2025). Theory-Informed Development of a Multicomponent Intervention to Implement Clinical Practice Guideline Recommendations in the Management of Shoulder Pain. Phys Ther, 105(1).
-
Blondin J, Desmeules F, Matifat E, Kechichian A. (2024). Patients presenting with musculoskeletal disorders in the emergency department: A qualitative study of their experiences when cared for by advanced practice physiotherapists in the province of Quebec. Musculoskeletal Care, 22(3):e1914.
-
Lafrance S, Santaguida C, Perreault K, Bath B, Hebert LJ, Feldman D, Desmeules F, et al. (2024). Is One Enough? The Effectiveness of a Single Session of Education and Exercise Compared to Multiple Sessions of a Multimodal Physiotherapy Intervention for Adults With Spinal Disorders in an Advanced Practice Physiotherapy Model of Care: A Randomized Controlled Trial. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther, 54(10):634-646.
-
Vincent R, Charron M, Lafrance S, Cormier AA, Kairy D, Desmeules F. (2024). Investigating the Use of Telemedicine by Health Care Providers to Diagnose and Manage Patients With Musculoskeletal Disorders: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Med Internet Res, 26:e52964.
-
Herrington J, Desmeules F, Farrer C, Lundon K, MacLeod A, et al. (2024). The Future is Now for Advanced Practice Physiotherapy in Canada. Physiother Can, 76(1):1-3.
-
Matifat E, Berger Pelletier E, Brison R, Hebert LJ, Roy JS, Woodhouse L, Desmeules F. (2023). Advanced practice physiotherapy care in emergency departments for patients with musculoskeletal disorders: a pragmatic cluster randomized controlled trial and cost analysis. Trials, 24(1):84.
-
Lafrance S, Vincent R, Demont A, Charron M, Desmeules F. (2023). Advanced practice physiotherapists can diagnose and triage patients with musculoskeletal disorders while providing effective care: a systematic review. J Physiother, 69(4):220-231.
-
Dube MO, Desmeules F, Lewis JS, Roy JS. (2023). Does the addition of motor control or strengthening exercises to education result in better outcomes for rotator cuff-related shoulder pain? A multiarm randomised controlled trial. Br J Sports Med, 57(8):457-463.
-
Lafrance S, Demont A, Thavorn K, Fernandes J, Santaguida C, Desmeules F. (2021). Economic evaluation of advanced practice physiotherapy models of care: a systematic review with meta-analyses. BMC Health Serv Res, 21(1):1214.
-
Fennelly O, Desmeules F, O’Sullivan C, Heneghan NR, Cunningham C. (2020). Advanced musculoskeletal physiotherapy practice: Informing education curricula. Musculoskelet Sci Pract, 48:102174.
-
Lowry V, Bass A, Lavigne P, Léger-St-Jean B, Blanchette D, Perreault K, Roy JS, Aiken A, Décary S, Desmeules F. Physiotherapists' ability to diagnose and manage shoulder disorders in an outpatient orthopedic clinic: results from a concordance study. J Shoulder Elbow Surg. 2020 Mar 18:S1058-2746(20)30005-7. doi: 10.1016/j.jse.2019.11.030. Epub ahead of print.
-
Demont A, Bourmaud A, Kechichian A, Desmeules F. The impact of direct access physiotherapy compared to primary care physician led usual care for patients with musculoskeletal disorders: a systematic review of the literature. Disabil Rehabil. 2019 Oct 11:1-12.
-
Decary S, Fallaha M, Belzile S, Martel-Pelletier J, Pelletier JP, Feldman D, Sylvestre MP, Vendittoli PA, Desmeules F: Clinical diagnosis of partial or complete anterior cruciate ligament tears using patients' history elements and physical examination tests. PLoS One 2018, 13(6):e0198797.
Education
Bachelor's degree, physiotherapy
Université Laval
Master's degree, experimental medicine (rehabilitation)
Université Laval
PhD, Epidemiology
Université Laval
Postdoctoral fellowships
Université de Montréal , Université McMaster, Université d’Alberta
Awards
- Junior 2 Research Scholar (FRQ-S)