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UW Health Rehabilitation Hospital rated in the top 10% of facilities in the U.S.

UW Health Rehabilitation physicians Benjamin Gillespie, DO, Jacob Halvorsen, DO, and Courtney Hogendorn, MD, provide that primary service – while the remainder of our rehabilitation divisional faculty provide backup coverage at UW Health Rehabilitation Hospital.

Commenting on news of the ranking, UW Rehabilitation Medicine Division Chief Nalini Sehgal, MD, said she is "proud of the incredible work our team of physicians, mid-level providers, resident trainees, therapists, and nurses do every day to not only provide high-quality patient care, but work daily to enhance function, quality of life, and health of our most sick and vulnerable patients."

Registration open for UW Sports Medicine Symposium!

The 46th Annual University of Wisconsin Sports Medicine Symposium will provide attendees with the opportunity to grow professionally, exchange ideas with colleagues, and learn new techniques – while getting the latest information on the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of athletic-related medical conditions and musculoskeletal injuries.

The two-day symposium will be held Thursday, May 2, and Friday, May 3, 2024, at the Discovery Building on the UW–Madison campus and the McClain Center.

Discounted registration rates are available through March 29, 2024.

25th Anniversary Meeting of The Forum

Tamara Scerpella, MD, Andrea Spiker, MD, and Pamela Lang, MD, of the Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation, attended the 25th Annual Meeting of The Forum held last month in Carlsbad, California. The Forum is a national group comprised of board-certified female orthopedic surgeons who are fellowship-trained, with a practice focused on Sports Medicine. Members are renowned female leaders in the field; many are pioneers in treating sports-related injuries.

Scientific presentations on diverse topics included workplace violence in healthcare, psychological aspects of injury and recovery, and bone health optimization as a component of healthy aging. The last was presented by Dr. Christina Morganti, who will join our department in July 2024 as director of our bone health program. Also featured were presentations on cutting-edge developments in hip, knee, shoulder, and ankle arthroscopic surgery.

"The silver anniversary of The Forum was celebrated by the largest ever gathering of women sports medicine fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeons at our 25th Annual Meeting," said Dr. Scerpella, emphasizing that, since the group's inception, "it has provided critical support for women in the specialty – serving as an invaluable platform for scientific expression, fellowship, and support in a specialty with less than 6% female representation." 

Christina Morganti, MD and

UW Orthopedics and Rehabilitation

Department Chair Tamara Scerpella, MD

Orthopedic Surgery Residency Alumni Reception at AAOS

Drs. Tamara Scerpella and Kathryn Williams, Advancement Manager Brandi Funk, and Graduate Medical Education Program Manager Erica Fry, welcomed UW Orthopedic Surgery program alums and current faculty members to our 2024 alumni reception.

The gathering took place on Thursday, February 15th, during the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons Annual Meeting (AAOS) annual meeting in San Francisco. It was wonderful to reconnect with UW Orthopedic alums from across the country. Thank you to all who joined us.                                   

UW Orthopedic researchers at ORS Annual Meeting

Earlier this month, UW Orthopedics and Rehabilitation Associate Professor Wan Ju Li, PhD, Assistant Professor Josh Roth, PhD, and members of Dr. Roth's research team attended the Annual Meeting of the Orthopaedic Research Society (ORS) in Long Beach, California.

Dr. Li organized a Stem Cells Research Interest Group at the event, laying the groundwork for establishing an official ORS section. He also delivered a podium presentation titled "Enhanced Immunomodulatory Capacity of Rejuvenated Mesenchymal Stem/Stromal Cells" and served as the moderator for a scientific session focused on Synovium and Osteoarthritis Pathology.

Dr. Roth co-organized a workshop titled "Translating Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence Technologies to Enhance Orthopaedic Patient Care" – while graduate students from his Roth Group: Biomechanical Advance in Medicine (BAM) Lab – Lesley Arant, Matthew Blomquist, and Sarah Edwards – presented posters showcasing their research.

Clockwise from top: Lesley Arant, Matthew Blomquist, Sarah Edwards, and Lesley Arant (presenting a 2nd poster)

Click here to enlarge image

Packers turn to UW OrthoRehab's Bryan Heiderscheit and Badger Athletic Performance to explore hamstring issues

Plagued with hamstring injuries, Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson and cornerback Eric Stokes will see Bryan Heiderscheit, PhD, and his team at Badger Athletic Performance (BAP) to discover the root cause of these issues – and learn ways to avoid these kinds of injuries in the future.

Badger Athletic Performance Director Bryan Heiderscheit is among a small group of specialists who received $4 million in funding from the NFL to study hamstring injuries, which the league says are the most common in the NFL and account for missed games 75% of the time.

Read the full article here.

Gait speed is one of your vital signs, so make sure yours is OK

In a February 18, 2024, news story, CNN Health highlights the important role of gait analyses for those engaging in sports and fitness activities to determine the likelihood of injury, mechanical issues that should be addressed, and the time you’ll be ready to resume an activity after an injury or surgery.

"For people who have certain injuries, a gait analysis can help us correct the mechanics that might cause it to recur," said Dr. Bryan Heiderscheit, a professor in orthopedics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and director of Badger Athletic Performance in Madison.

“Your gait isn’t something that can be corrected instantly,” Heiderscheit said. “It’s not as simple as saying, ‘Walk differently.’ You may be walking a certain way because one calf muscle is half the size of the other one, and the only way to correct that is to focus on certain exercises.”

Read the full article here.

Ask the Pediatrician: How to keep the fun in sports to keep kids active

Drew Watson, MD, MS, FAAP, an assistant professor and pediatric sports medicine physician with the Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, and Joel S. Brenner, MD, MPH, FAAP, a professor in the Department of Pediatrics at East Virginia College, co-authored an article on strategies for keeping children physically active. Both authors are members of the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on Sports Medicine & Fitness. The piece appeared in news outlets across the country.

Read the full article here.

UW Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation welcomes Dr. Keith Knurr to faculty

On March 1, 2024, Keith Knurr, DPT, PhD, SCS, will join our department as an Assistant Professor (tenure track). A board-certified specialist in sports physical therapy, Dr. Knurr earned his Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, his Doctor of Physical Therapy from UW School of Medicine and Public Health, and his Doctor of Philosophy (Graduate Program in Clinical Investigation) from UW-Madison. Before joining our faculty team, Dr. Knurr was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow with Badger Athletic Performance (BAP).

Dr. Knurr’s research program seeks to better understand the implications of sports-related injuries on long-term health outcomes. Priority areas include determining the impact of anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction on long-term knee function and health and identifying clinically modifiable factors associated with cartilage changes that can be used as intervention targets.

Recent publications by members of our team

Human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived planar neural organoids assembled on synthetic hydrogels

Majumder J, Torr EE, Aisenbrey EA, Lebakken CS, Favreau PF, Richards WD, Yin Y, Chang Q, Murphy WL | J Tissue Eng. 2024 Feb 14

Mindfulness Practice Is Associated With Improved Wellbeing and Reduced Injury Risk in Female NCAA Division I Athletes

Haraldsdottir K, Sanfilippo J, Anderson S, Steiner Q, McGehee C, Schultz K, Watson A | Sports Health. 2024 Feb 13

Diffusion tensor imaging of hamstring muscles after acute strain injury and throughout recovery in collegiate athletes

Wille CM, Hurley SA, Schmida E, Lee K, Kijowski R, Heiderscheit BC | Skeletal Radiol. 2024 Jan 25

Association of quantitative diffusion tensor imaging measures with time to return to sport and reinjury incidence following acute hamstring strain injury

Wille CM, Hurley SA, Joachim MR, Lee K, Kijowski R, Heiderscheit BC | J Biomech. 2024 Jan 20

Overuse Injuries, Overtraining, and Burnout in Young Athletes

Brenner JS, Watson A; COUNCIL ON SPORTS MEDICINE AND FITNESS | Pediatrics. 2024 Jan

The Influence of Race, Socioeconomic Status, and Physical Activity on the Mental Health Benefits of Sport Participation During COVID-19

Biese KM, McGuine TA, Haraldsdottir K, Reardon C, Watson AM | Sports Health. 2024 Jan 21

Comparison of MRI and arthroscopy findings for transitional zone cartilage damage in the acetabulum of the hip joint

Markhardt BK, Hund S, Rosas HG, Symanski JS, Mao L, Spiker AM, Blankenbaker DG | Skeletal Radiol. 2024 Jan 15

Optimized biomimetic minerals maintain activity of mRNA complexes after long term storage

Choe JA, Brinkman HM, Lee JS, Murphy WL | Acta Biomater. 2024 Jan 15

Focus areas and methodological characteristics of North American-based health disparity research in sports medicine: a scoping review

Kliethermes SA, Asif IM, Blauwet C, Christensen L, Coleman N, Lavallee ME, Moeller JL, Phillips SF, Rao A, Rizzone KH, Sund S, Tanji JL, Tuakli-Wosornu YA, Stafford CD 2nd | Br J Sports Med. 2024 Jan

Mineral coated microparticles doped with fluoride and complexed with mRNA prolong transfection in fracture healing

Nelson AL, Fontana G, Chubb L, Choe J, Williams K, Regan D, Huard J, Murphy W, Ehrhart N, Bahney C | Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2024 Jan 9

Does Topical Vancomycin Powder Use in Fracture Surgery Change Bacteriology and Antibiotic Susceptibilities? An Analysis of the VANCO Trial

Joshi M, O'Toole RV, Carlini AR, Gary JL, Obremskey WT, Murray CK, Gaski G, Reid JS, Degani Y, Taylor TJ, Collins SC, ScM YH, Whiting PS, Patterson JT, Lee OC, Castillo RC; METRC. |  J Orthop Trauma. 2024 Jan 9

Ultrasound shear wave seeds reduced following hamstring strain injury but not after returning to sport

Crawford SK, Wille CM, Joachim MR, Lee KS, Heiderscheit BC | Insights Imaging. 2024 Jan 8

Cross cultural adaptation, reliability and validity of the Persian version of the university of Wisconsin running injury and recovery index

Sheikhi B, Akbari H, Heiderscheit B | BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2024 Jan 9

Clinical and exercise professional opinion on designing a postpartum return-to-running training programme: an international Delphi study and consensus statement

Deering RE, Donnelly GM, Brockwell E, Bo K, Davenport MH, De Vivo M, Dufour S, Forner L, Mills H, Moore IS, Olson A, Christopher SM | Br J Sports Med. 2024 Jan 8

An Apparatus for Measuring Combined Shear-Tensile Loading in Fibrous Tissues Ex Vivo

Blank J, Roth J. | J Biomech Eng. 2024 Jan 6

High but Inequitable COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake Among Rehabilitation Patients

Warden A, Liang J, Vanias KJ, Hetzel S, Hayney MS, Weiss JM, Caldera F, Caldera K | WMJ. 2023 Dec

Comprehensive, Evidence-Based, Consensus Guidelines for Prescription of Opioids for Chronic Non-Cancer Pain from the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians (ASIPP)

Manchikanti L et al (Sehgal N)| Pain Physician. 2023 Dec 26

Changes in Sleep, Stress, and Fatigue Were Not Prospectively Associated With Running-Related Injuries Among High School Cross Country Runners

Joachim MR, Heiderscheit BC, Kliethermes SA | Sports Health. 2023 Dec 26

Linda feels great after pickleball fall led to trauma surgery

We have some exciting opportunities for orthopedic and rehabilitation medicine faculty physicians to join our incredible, dedicated team!

Learn more about these positions and working at UW Hospitals and Clinics and the University of Wisconsin-Madison by clicking the links listed in this section.

Orthopedics

Foot & Ankle Surgeon

Learn more

Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

PM&R Pain Physician (2 positions)

Learn more

Learn more at ortho.wisc.edu