Position: Associate Professor
Department: College of Healthcare Professions
Phone: 610-282-1100, x2142
Office: 208 Wills Hall
Education
Dr. Christos Karagiannopoulos is an Associate Professor in the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at DeSales University and a clinician‑scholar with more than 25 years of experience in orthopaedic rehabilitation, with a focused clinical specialization in hand and upper extremity therapy since 2008. He is a board-certified clinical specialist in the rehabilitation of the upper extremity and hand, and a Certified Hand Therapist (CHT).
At DeSales, Dr. Karagiannopoulos plays a central role in the musculoskeletal curriculum. He serves as director of the Musculoskeletal I–III course series and co‑teaches the Differential Diagnosis and Intervention sequence. His teaching integrates biomechanics, pathomechanics, and clinical reasoning, supporting students in applying evidence‑based approaches to complex musculoskeletal conditions. He also contributes to courses in physical therapy modalities, evidence‑based practice, and orthopaedic review, and serves as a faculty mentor across all four research courses, guiding students through study design, implementation, and dissemination.
Dr. Karagiannopoulos is highly engaged in professional leadership and service within the hand therapy and orthopedic physical therapy communities. He has served as Program Chair for the APTA Academy of Hand and Upper Extremity (2021–2025) and contributes to the Academy’s research initiatives. He is an item reviewer for the Hand Therapy Certification Commission (HTCC) and has been a long‑standing faculty member of the Philadelphia Surgery and Rehabilitation Hand Meeting. He also served on the scientific planning committee for the 2025 International Federation of Societies for Hand Therapy (IFSHT) Triennial Congress.
He maintains active involvement with the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) and the American Society of Hand Therapists (ASHT), including service as an abstract reviewer and participation in clinical practice guideline initiatives. In addition, he serves as a member of the DeSales Institutional Review Board and multiple program committees, including leadership of the Research Track Task Force, while also serving as an adjunct faculty member of Western University, School of Health Sciences, Master’s Program in Upper Extremity Rehabilitation, London, Ontario, Canada since 2021.
Dr. Karagiannopoulos is an established scholar with a focused research agenda in wrist proprioception and rehabilitation following distal radius fractures. He developed the Active Wrist Joint Position Sense (AWJPS) test, establishing its psychometric properties and validating its use in assessing proprioceptive deficits in individuals with wrist trauma and chronic instability. His work has been widely published in the Journal of Hand Therapy and referenced throughout the literature, contributing to clinical assessment practices in hand therapy.
He has also contributed to national clinical guidance through authorship on the 2024 APTA Clinical Practice Guidelines for distal radius fracture rehabilitation (JOSPT) and contributions to the 2020 AAOS Clinical Practice Guidelines. Dr. Karagiannopoulos regularly presents his work at regional, national, and international conferences and mentors student research projects presented at professional meetings.
His contributions have been recognized with honors including the American Society of Hand Therapists (ASHT) Best Scientific Paper Award, the Journal of Hand Therapy First‑Time Writer’s Award (2013), and the APTA Academy of Hand and Upper Extremity Distinguished Service Award (2024). Most recently, he received a certificate of appreciation from DeSales University College of Health Professions as a Research Excellence Award Nominee.
Through his combined roles as clinician, educator, and international scholar, Dr. Karagiannopoulos advances the program’s emphasis on clinical excellence, research‑informed practice, and service‑oriented physical therapy education.
Dr. Karagiannopoulos was born and raised in Athens, Greece. He arrived in the U.S. at the age of 19 to pursue higher education opportunities after high school. Since then, he has been dedicated to the ideals of continuous learning and self-actualization, deeply believing in the principle of “striving hard to become the best you can be in life.” He is a dedicated husband and parent of two daughters.