About
Research
Email: stephen.patterson@stmarys.ac.uk
Biography
Stephen is Professor of Applied Exercise Physiology and Performance at St Mary’s University. He directs the Centre for Applied Sport and Performance Sciences (CASPS), which brings together two research groups: Performance and Applied Practice, and Injury and Rehabilitation. He also leads the Professional Doctorate in Applied Practice in Sport / Health.
Stephen has published more than 100 peer-reviewed papers. He is best known for his work on blood flow restriction (BFR) exercise, and was lead author of the 2019 international position stand on BFR methodology, application and safety. His work spans BFR and ischaemic preconditioning, clinical rehabilitation, and the physical demands of team sport, with a growing focus on women’s football.
He works closely with external partners to answer applied questions, including FIFA, national governing bodies, NHS trusts and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory. He has consulted for organisations in the Premier League, NBA and NFL.
His research has been supported by industry and government funding, including Delfi Medical and the Human Social Science Research Capability framework. He led the Frontiers in Physiology research topic Blood Flow Restriction: Rehabilitation to Performance, and has given invited talks on BFR to clubs including Arsenal, FC Barcelona, Manchester City and Benfica, and at the APTA Combined Sections Meeting. He has examined PhDs at Loughborough, Deakin, Essex, Brighton and Manchester Metropolitan universities.
Stephen joined St Mary’s in 2009. He holds a BSc in Sport and Exercise Science from Napier University, Edinburgh (2005), an MSc in Medicine and Science in Sport and Exercise from the University of Strathclyde (2006), and a PhD from Loughborough University on the responses and adaptations to exercise with blood flow restriction.
Research
Research profile
Stephen’s research sits across health and sports performance, with applied questions shaped by practitioners and industry partners. His main areas are:
- Blood flow restriction exercise: methodology, safety, mechanisms (including exercise-induced hypoalgesia) and use in clinical rehabilitation and high-performance sport.
- Ischaemic preconditioning: effects on exercise performance, pain and recovery, and practical application in sport.
- Rehabilitation and return to sport: on-field rehabilitation after ACL reconstruction and return to sport after injury.
- Women’s sport: physical demands and characteristics in women’s rugby union and football, concussion, and player health surveillance.
- Team sport physiology: match demands, neuromuscular fatigue and recovery, and athlete profiling.
Doctoral supervision
Stephen has supervised six doctoral students to completion and two postdoctoral researchers. He currently supervises 18 doctoral students across the PhD and Professional Doctorate programmes.
Current doctoral students
| Student |
Programme |
Thesis topic |
Role |
| Jamie Farrell |
PhD |
The use of blood flow restriction in lower back pain patients |
Director of Studies |
| Paul Hough |
PhD |
The assessment of psychomotor vigilance performance following circadian rhythm misalignment in elite athletes and skilled performers |
Supervisor |
| Alexander Barron-Levington |
PhD |
Nutrition in academy footballers |
Director of Studies |
| Mark Armitage |
PhD |
Rehabilitation and return to play in footballers |
Director of Studies |
| Alessandro Compagnin |
PhD |
Return to play from ACL injury
|
Director of Studies |
| Filippo Picinini |
PhD |
On-field rehabilitation from injury |
Director of Studies |
| Nigel McCarthy |
Professional Doctorate (submitted October 2026) |
Physical performance in elite women footballers
|
Director of Studies |
| Uzo Ehiogu |
Professional Doctorate |
Performance and rehabilitation in elite climbers |
Director of Studies |
| Nathan Griffith |
Professional Doctorate |
Change of direction in academy footballers |
Director of Studies |
| Jack Phillips |
Professional Doctorate |
Bone stress injuries in elite footballers
|
Director of Studies |
| David Sadkin |
Professional Doctorate |
Profiling of elite 400m runners |
Director of Studies |
| Martin Whitaker |
Professional Doctorate |
Blood flow restriction for recovery |
Director of Studies |
| Ben Thorne |
Professional Doctorate |
Sleep in elite athletes and practitioners
|
Director of Studies |
| Joshua Booth |
Professional Doctorate |
Performance and physical characteristics of elite football goalkeepers
|
Director of Studies |
| Sean Boyle |
Professional Doctorate |
The development and evaluation of a maturation-informed, micro-dosed physical development framework for male Gaelic football academy athletes
|
Director of Studies |
| Arian Forouhandeh |
Professional Doctorate |
Expected physical output: a contextual and predictive framework for interpreting match running demands in the English Premier League
|
Director of Studies |
| Jack Easthope |
Professional Doctorate |
The physiological determinants of Hyrox performance: a multifactorial investigation
|
Supervisor |
| Tim Egerton |
Professional Doctorate |
The measurement and modulation of running biomechanics durability through isometric strength training in endurance runners
|
Supervisor |
Completed doctorates
| Student |
Year |
Thesis topic |
Role |
| Nasir Uddin |
2026 |
Central and peripheral modulations following hypo-hydration and mild traumatic brain injuries in combat athletes (University of Essex)
|
Supervisor |
| Luke Woodhouse |
2025 |
The physical and fitness characteristics of elite female rugby players and the relationships to match performance
|
Director of Studies |
| Paul Head |
2024 |
The efficacy of blood flow restriction training in clinical populations
|
Director of Studies |
| David Silver |
2023 |
Concussion in youth rugby (St Mary’s / University of Surrey)
|
Director of Studies |
| Luke Hughes |
2019 |
Blood flow restriction as a clinical rehabilitation tool (St Mary’s / Liverpool Hope)
|
Director of Studies |
| Jonathan Griffin |
2017 |
The effect of ischaemic preconditioning on parameters of athletic performance (St Mary’s / University of Surrey)
|
Director of Studies |
Previous postdoctoral researchers
| Researcher |
Years |
Project |
| Dr Ryan Norbury |
2022 to 2023 |
The application of blood flow restriction training for pain inhibition |
| Dr Luke Hughes |
2019 to 2022 |
The application of blood flow restriction training for clinical rehabilitation |
If you’re interested in doing a PhD or Professional Doctorate with Stephen, please email stephen.patterson@stmarys.ac.uk.
Selected publications
A selection of key papers by theme. Stephen’s full publication record is available on ORCID and Google Scholar (links above).
Blood flow restriction exercise
- Patterson SD, Hughes L, Warmington S, Burr J, Scott BR, Owens J, Abe T, Nielsen JL, Libardi CA, Laurentino G, Neto GR, Brandner C, Martin-Hernandez J, Loenneke J (2019). Blood flow restriction exercise: considerations of methodology, application, and safety. Frontiers in Physiology, 10, 533. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2019.00533
- Hughes L, Paton B, Rosenblatt B, Gissane C, Patterson SD (2017). Blood flow restriction training in clinical musculoskeletal rehabilitation: a systematic review and meta-analysis. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 51(13), 1003 to 1011. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2016-097071
- Hughes L, Rosenblatt B, Haddad F, Gissane C, McCarthy D, Clarke T, Ferris G, Dawes J, Paton B, Patterson SD (2019). Comparing the effectiveness of blood flow restriction and traditional heavy load resistance training in the post-surgery rehabilitation of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction patients: a UK National Health Service randomised controlled trial. Sports Medicine, 49, 1787 to 1805. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-019-01137-2
- Hughes L, Patterson SD (2020). The effect of blood flow restriction exercise on exercise-induced hypoalgesia and endogenous opioid and endocannabinoid mechanisms of pain modulation. Journal of Applied Physiology, 128(4), 914 to 924. https://doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.00768.2019
- Norbury R, Grant I, Woodhead A, Hughes L, Tallent J, Patterson SD (2024). Acute hypoalgesic, neurophysiological and perceptual responses to low-load blood flow restriction exercise and high-load resistance exercise. Experimental Physiology, 109(5), 672 to 688. https://doi.org/10.1113/EP091705
- Clarkson MJ, Scott BR, Patterson SD, Warmington SA (2025). Blood flow restriction exercise in high-performance sport settings: a practitioner survey. Journal of Sports Sciences, 43(19), 2133 to 2144. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2025.2525710
Ischaemic preconditioning
- Patterson SD, Glaister M, Pattison JR, Bezodis N (2015). The effect of ischemic preconditioning on repeated sprint cycling performance. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 47(8), 1652 to 1658. https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000000576
- Souza HLR, Oliveira GT, Meireles A, Dos Santos MP, Vieira JG, Arriel RA, Patterson SD, Marocolo M (2024). Does ischemic preconditioning enhance sports performance more than placebo or no intervention? A systematic review with meta-analysis. Journal of Sport and Health Science, 14, 101010. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jshs.2024.101010
- Norbury R, Dickens L, Grant I, Emery A, Patterson SD (2023). Remote ischaemic preconditioning increases tolerance to experimentally induced cold pain. European Journal of Sport Science, 23(12), 2435 to 2442. https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2023.2241831
Women’s sport and player health
- Woodhouse LN, Tallent J, Patterson SD, Waldron M (2021). Elite international female rugby union physical match demands: a five-year longitudinal analysis by position and opposition quality. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 24(11), 1173 to 1179. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2021.03.018
- Wilke CF, Serner A, Massey A, McCall A, Fulcher M, Rosenbloom C, Carmody S, Patterson SD, Okholm Kryger K (2024). Knowledge, attitude and behaviour around concussion at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023: part 1, medical staff. Science and Medicine in Football, 9(3), 251 to 261. https://doi.org/10.1080/24733938.2024.2388190
- Wilke CF, McCall A, Serner A, Berthelot G, Massey A, Patterson SD, Okholm Kryger K, Clarsen B (2026). Player health surveillance in football: a global map of programmes in national and international leagues and tournaments. Science and Medicine in Football. https://doi.org/10.1080/24733938.2026.2642645
Rehabilitation and return to sport
- Picinini F, Della Villa F, Tallent J, Patterson SD, et al., Buckthorpe M (2025). High return to competition rate after on-field rehabilitation in competitive male soccer players after ACL reconstruction: GPS tracking in 100 consecutive cases. Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, 13(3). https://doi.org/10.1177/23259671251320093
- Buckthorpe M, Gokeler A, Herrington L, Hughes M, Grassi A, Wadey R, Patterson SD, et al. (2023). Optimising the early-stage rehabilitation process post-ACL reconstruction. Sports Medicine, 54(1), 49 to 72. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-023-01934-w
Book chapters
- Rosenblatt BA, Hughes L, Patterson SD (2021). Blood flow restriction training. In Jeffreys I, Moody J (Eds.), Strength and Conditioning for Sports Performance (2nd ed.). Routledge.
- Patterson SD, Hughes L, Owens J (2019). Early postoperative role of blood flow restriction therapy to avoid muscle atrophy. In Noyes FR, Barber-Westin SD (Eds.), Return to Sport After ACL Reconstruction and Other Knee Operations. Springer.
- Patterson SD, Jeffries O, Waldron M (2018). Proteins and amino acids and physical exercise. In Walrand S (Ed.), Nutrition and Skeletal Muscle. Elsevier.
Media enquiries
For media enquiries, please contact the Press Office: press.office@stmarys.ac.uk.