ABOUT
Dr. Stephan Praet

Dr. Stephan Praet is a Dutch Sport and Exercise Physician, who received his medical training at the Vrije University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, following a Master’s Degree in Human Movement Sciences at the same university. He subsequently specialized in Sport and Exercise medicine at the Netherlands Institute for the Training of Specialist in Sports Medicine in 2004. From 2004 till 2015 he worked as a consultant physician/ specialist doctor in Sport & Exercise Medicine at Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rijndam Rehabilitation Institute and ZorgSaam Hospitals Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, the Netherlands.

In April 2015 Dr. Praet imigrated to Australia to take up a position as a consultant physician in Sport & Exercise Medicine at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS). At the AIS he was responsible for the clinical management of high performance athlete’s injuries and illnesses. He holds a PhD in Clinical Exercise Physiology from Maastricht University, The Netherlands and he is a Fellow of the European Board of Sports Medicine (FEBSM) as well as the Australasian College of Sport and Exercise Physicians (FACSEP).

Since November 2017 Dr. Praet works in private practice as a consultant in Sport & Exercise Medicine at Ochre Health Medical Centre at Bruce, at the University of Canberra Health precinct  as well as at Ochre Health Medical Centre, Kingston, ACT.  On a fortnightly basis he also offers Specialist Sportsmedicine Services in the Wollongong area at PHYTNESS Healthcare, Fairy Meadow, NSW.

As a previous middle-distance runner (800m:1:51.9) and physician he understands athletes’ frustrations of being injured and the importance of supporting both healthy people and patients in maintaining (or regaining) an active and injury-free lifestyle.

Dr. Praet covers most sports medicine related problems, but has a special interest in:

  • Running injuries to the foot, lower limb, groin, pelvis and lower back
  • Concussion management
  • Bone stress injuries and Relative Energy Deficiency Syndrome (RED-S)
  • Sports nutrition and Nutraceuticals
  • Medical imaging and treatment of Tendinopathies
  • Treatment of Myofascial trigger points, and Lyftogt P.I.T. (neuro)prolotherapy (dextrose injections) for chronic myofascial (nerve) pain and TMJ dysfunction
  • Muscle deconditioning and exercise prescription in chronic illnesses, such as cancer, heart failure, COPD, mitochondrial myopathies and type 2 diabetes.
  • Healthy Ageing (Medicine 3.0), Cardiovascular risk assessment, heart rate variability and cardiopulmonary exercise testing

Dr. Stephan Praet is currently appointed as Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Canberra Research Institute for Sports and Exercise (UCRISE).

Dr. Praet has co-authored over 40 peer-reviewed manuscripts and book chapters and has been involved in a wide array of research projects on the clinical application of exercise testing and exercise prescription in Metabolic Syndrome, Type 2 diabetes, Cancer cachexia and Mitochondrial myopathy patients.

From 2016-2020 he was an Associate Editor of the Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport and is also a member of an international MOVEMBER steering committee that has been initiating and supervising a global GAP4 trial on the effect of Intense Exercise in Metastatic Castrate-Resistant Prostate Cancer.

Through transfer of knowledge from Sports Medicine and Exercise Science, and in collaboration with Muscle Metabolism Maastricht Research Unit, the department or Rehabilitation Medicine at Erasmus University Medical Centre and the Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation Research Unit & Institute of Sports Medicine Copenhagen Bispebjerg Hospital, Denmark, his translational type of research has been focused on both the cardiovascular and musculoskeletal consequences of chronic and excessive metabolic stress.

His research at the Australian Institute of Sport and University of Canberra Research Institute for Sports and Exercise (UCRISE) is aimed at developing and validating highly novel imaging modalities (ultrasound/MRI) for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of chronic musculoskeletal overuse injuries. At the moment, he is also investigating the potential benefits of nutraceuticals as an add-on treatment of musculoskeletal injuries.

Both at Ochre Health Medical Centre in Bruce and  Kingston, Dr. Praet is offering those same sports medicine services and tests, and applying the results of cutting edge research and scientific insights to athletes with musculoskeletal injuries, those who are intolerant to exercise due to chronic disease or cancer treatment, those seeking a pre-participation screening before starting high-intensity or competitive sport activities, and developing or high-performance athletes.