Dr. Jiapeng Xu, a member of the Human Sensorimotor Control Lab (HSC) in the School of Kinesiology, successfully defended his doctoral dissertation on February 9, 2023. Xu’s dissertation is entitled Vibro-tactile stimulation as a non-invasive treatment method for cervical dystonia. People with cervical dystonia suffer from involuntary spasms in their neck muscles that lead to abnormal head twisting and postures that the affected person cannot control. The clinical trial behind Xu’s work investigated if the superficial stimulation of the skin of the cervical region can alleviate these symptoms and restore normal head posture. The main result of the study is that about 40% of patients meaningfully improved their head posture and 56% reported a reduction in pain. Dr. Xu has accepted a position at Analog Devices, a leading U.S. semiconductor company, and will relocate to Boston.