Abir Massaad - High Hopes Dubai

Abir Massaad

Clinical Team Supervisor &
Senior Pediatric Physical Therapist, PhD
DHA License Number: 77229845-001

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Biography

Dr. Abir Massaad has been a neuropediatric physiotherapist for more than 18 years, and has focused on pediatric and neuropediatric rehabilitation. Her specialty is in the field of gait and motion analysis in children and served as the physiotherapist in charge at the gait and motion analysis laboratory at SESOBEL (Lebanon). She also has extensive publications in the field of muscle, gait and motion abnormalities in children with Cerebral Palsy.

She received a degree in physical therapy from the University of Saint-Joseph, Lebanon and was later awarded a Masters degree from the University in 2010 with a focus on musculoskeletal abnormalities in children with Cerebral Palsy (CP). She later awarded a PhD from the University of Saint-Joseph, in collaboration with the Institut de Biomécanique Humaine Georges Charpak, Arts et Métiers ParisTech, Paris.

Dr. Abir Massaad currently directs the Research and Development department at SESOBEL and is an assistant professor at the Laboratory of Biomechanics and Medical Imaging at the Faculty of Medicine; University of Saint-Joseph. She is also a member of the European Academy of Childhood Disability (EACD), as well as the European Society for Movement Analysis in Adults and Children (ESMAC). She is a regular abstract reviewer at the ESMAC annual meeting and an invited reviewer for international scientific journals such as European Spine Journal, Gait and Posture, Clinical Neuroscience, and others.

Dr. Abir Massaad joins High Hopes Dubai as a Clinical Team Supervisor overlooking and managing the interdisciplinary therapy programs for our super special children. She will be guiding the team on the most suitable plans and schedules for our children. In addition, she will be working herself as a Senior Physical Therapist within the Physical therapy team with various children presenting with complex physical needs ranging from Genetic Conditions to Neurological Disorders to Cerebral Palsy. Her passion and expertise is for the moderate to complex needs.

She is fluent in English, Arabic and French and she can offer therapeutic support in all three languages.

HER CERTIFICATIONS

  • PhD in Biomechanics
  • Specialization in gait and motion analysis in children with physical disabilities
  • Intervention in Pediatrics and Neuropediatrics
  • Sensory Integration Method-Basic Level
  • Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM)
  • Motor Function Measure (MFM) for children with neuromuscular disease
  • Movement and Facilitation techniques in children with cerebral palsy
  • Basics of Conductive Education/Peto-Olive Surtees
  • TheraSuit MethodTM
  • Basic and advance course on gait analysis, Leuven, Belgium
  • Handling and neuromotor key points facilitations in children with physical disabilites
  • Wheelchair Service Training Package (WSTP)-Basic Level
  • The CVI Range Approach

HER Expertise

  • Cerebral Palsy
  • Rare Genetic Conditions
  • Down Syndrome
  • Prematurity and Early Intervention
  • Spina Bifida
  • Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI)
  • Infantile Stroke
  • Hypotonia / Low muscle tone, Hypertonia / High muscle tone or Dystonia
  • Ataxia and Dyskinesia
  • Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and other Neuromuscular Diseases
  • Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI)
  • Global Developmental Delays
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder
  • Toe-walking and other Gait / Walking difficulties
  • Hypermobility
  • Torticollis
  • Clubfoot/Congenital Talipes Equinovarus (CTE)
  • Post-Surgical Rehabilitation
  • Post-chemotherapy Rehabilitation
  • Neurogenetic Disorders
  • Gait Abnormalities in Children
  • Trexo Robotics

Blogs by Abir Massaad

What happens early lasts for a lifetime: Early intervention in children with developmental delays
What happens early lasts for a lifetime: Early intervention in children with developmental delays
February 4th, 2022

Babies are born ready to receive and capture all kinds of stimulation: auditory, tactile, visual, etc. This helps guarantee proper neuromotor development, the basics of…

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