Professor Jan Hartvigsen is Head of Research at the Research Unit for Clinical Biomechanics and he is Co-Director of the Center for Muscle and Joint Health at the Department of Sports Science and Clinical Biomechanics, Faculty of Health Sciences at SDU. He is also Senior Researcher at the Chiropractic Knowledge Hub.
Jan Hartvigsen is a chiropractor (1989) and he has a PhD degree in epidemiology (2001). Jan Hartvigsen is an internationally leading researcher and research leader in musculoskeletal health. His focus is on improving care for people with musculoskeletal pain and disability and he takes pride in breaking down barriers between disciplines and bringing together people from diverse backgrounds in productive collaborations. His primary research focus is clinical studies of musculoskeletal pain and disability increasingly with a focus on how to implement evidence-based care in clinical settings and health systems.
Professor Hartvigsen has published more than 350 papers in international peer-reviewed journals including in British Medical Journal and The Lancet. He was deputy-chair of the landmark Lancet Low Back Pain Series published in 2018. He has worked as scientific consultant for the World Health Organization (WHO), and he was member of the WHO Guideline Development Group for Primary Chronic Low Back Pain. He has also been member of Danish National Clinical Guideline committees under the Danish Health Authority for the treatment of cervical radiculopathy, lumbar radiculopathy, shoulder pain, back pain and persistent symptoms after concussion. He is member of the Executive Committee for the International Forum for Back and Neck Pain research in Primary Care and the Scientific Committee for the World Congress for Low Back and Pelvic Pain. Jan Hartvigsen is a collaborator for the Global Burden of Disease Study.
Professor Hartvigsen is passionate about mentoring of early career researchers. He has supervised 20+ PhD students to completion, and he is co-founder and mentor in the Chiropractic Academy for Research Leadership.
Jan Hartvigsen has received numerous awards for his research. In 2020 he was appointed Knight of the Order of Dannebrog by Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark.