Trauma Research Group
The University of Utah’s Orthopaedic Trauma Service provides unparalleled patient care with a focus on the management of acute fractures as well as malunions and nonunions. The team maintains particular areas of research interest in the etiology and prevention of post-traumatic osteoarthritis, the effects of opioid use in surgical treatment of fractures, patient reported outcomes measures, and the cost effective delivery of quality trauma care.
The Orthopaedic Trauma Service functions under the leadership of Professor Thomas Higgins, MD, and Assistant Professors David Rothberg and Justin Haller, MD. As Clinical Research Coordinator, Andrea Gurule organizes the collaborative research efforts of the team. The team is a study center for the nationwide DOD-funded, Major Extremity Trauma Consortium (METRC), which focuses on the acute treatment of major limb trauma. In collaboration with researchers, staff, and clinicians, the trauma team emphasizes the cultivation of interdisciplinary teams to address the needs of our diverse trauma population.
Current research alliances at the U of U include work with Associate Professor Eric Garland, PhD, in the College of Social Work, Professor Ken Johnson, MD, at the Department of Anesthesiology, and the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Nationally, in addition to METRC, the Utah Orthopaedic Trauma team is collaborating with investigators at Johns Hopkins University, University of Iowa, Indiana University, and UCSF.