AOSSM presents awards and grants to encourage research in orthopaedic sports medicine

In order to recognize and encourage cutting-edge research in key areas of orthopaedic sports medicine, the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine (AOSSM) will present ten research awards and seven grants during its Annual Meeting, July 11-14 in Chicago, IL. As a leader in orthopaedic sports medicine, AOSSM annually provides more than $350,000 to research initiatives and projects around the country. Highlights of this year's award recipients include:

2013 AOSSM Young Investigators Grant
The Young Investigator Grant (YIG) is specifically designed to support young researchers who have not received prior funding. This year AOSSM selected Ermias Abebe MD (University of Pittsburgh) for "The Effects of ACL Deficiency on Meniscal Strain and Cartilage Deformation," a study designed to investigate how ligament and meniscus injuries and treatment affect the knee joints.

2013 AOSSM Sandy Kirkley Clinical Outcomes Research Grant
To honor the memory and spirit of Dr. Kirkley, AOSSM established a grant of $20,000 that provides start-up, "seed," or supplemental funding for an outcome research project or pilot study. This year's recipient is E. Todd Schroeder PHD from the University of Southern California. His project, "Testosterone Administration and ACL Reconstruction in Men" will determine if testosterone treatment for men undergoing ACL repair will help optimize the rehabilitation process and allow for a full return to health and knee function.

2013 AOSSM/Sanofi Biosurgery Osteoarthritis Grant
The third-annual Sanofi Biosurgery Osteoarthritis Grant was awarded to Asheesh Bedi MD, from the University of Michigan, for his planned research entitled "Changes in Biomarkers of Cartilage Degeneration and Inflammation Following Arthroscopic Decompression of Femoacetabular Impingement." The AOSSM/Sanofi Biosurgery Osteoarthritis Grant funds investigations related to early osteoarthritis and/or prevention of OA progression. This one-year award of $50,000 supports a lab/basic science project and is chosen by the AOSSM Research Committee.

2013 AOSSM/ConMed Linvatec Research Mentoring Program
AOSSM initiated a research mentoring program in 2012 that will bring together individuals who have shown scientific promise at an early stage of their careers with senior clinician-scientists who have highly successful research programs. The first class of award winners include mentee Alfred Atanda MD (A.I. DuPont Hospital for Children) with mentor Mininder Kocher MD, MPH (Boston Children's Hospital), mentee Cory Edgar MD, PhD (Boston University) with mentor Kurt Spindler MD (Vanderbilt University), and mentee Joseph DeAngelis MD (Beth Israel Deconess Medical Center) with mentor Warren Dunn MD, MPH (University of Wisconsin).

AOSSM/RTI Biologics Three-Year Research Initiative Grant
AOSSM's Research Initiative Grant supports extended research projects with five installments of $50,000 over a three-year period (2013-2015). The latest grant was presented to Alexander Scott PhD to support his ongoing research titled "Intratendinous Injections of Platelet‐poor Plasma, or Platelet-rich Plasma with or without Leukocyte Enrichment for Patellar Tendinopathy: A Multi‐centre, Double‐blind, Randomized Controlled Trial," which explores the use of PRP therapy in treating sports injuries.

Aircast Award for Basic Science
Voted by the AOSSM Fellowship Committee, this year's winning paper is: "Conjoined Tendon Transfer vs Modified Bristow in a Glenoid Bone Loss Model: A Biomechanical Study" by Anand P. Panchal DO, of Triangle Orthopaedic Associates, PA, Durham, NC, Daryl C. Osbahr MD, MedStar Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore, MD, Wiemi Douoguih MD, Washington Hospital Center, Washington, DC, and Brent G. Parks MSC, Union Memorial Hospital, Baltimore, MD.

Aircast Award for Clinical Science
Voted by the AOSSM Fellowship Committee, this year's winning paper is: "Risk Factors for Anterior Glenohumeral Instability," by Brett D. Owens MD, from Keller Army Hospital in West Point, NY, Scot Campbell MD, Wilford Hall Medical Center, San Antonio, TX, and Kenneth L. Cameron PhD, MPH, ATC, Keller Army Hospital, West Point, NY.

Cabaud Memorial Award
Given to the best paper researching hard or soft tissue biology, this award is selected by the AOSSM Awards Subcommittee with awardees receiving $2000. This year's winning paper is: "Use of a Bioactive Scaffold to Stimulate Healing also Minimizes Post-Traumatic Osteoarthritis after Surgery" by Martha M. Murray MD (Children's Hospital Boston) and Braden C. Fleming PhD.

Excellence in Research Award
This award is selected by the AOSSM Awards Subcommittee with principal investigators receiving $2,000. This year's winning paper was from the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York and titled "Presentation Development and Validation of a Pediatric Sports Activity Rating Scale." Study authors included: Peter D. Fabricant MD, MPH, Alex Robles BS, Timothy Downey-Zayas BS1, Huong T. Do MA, Robert G. Marx MD, MSc, Roger F. Widmann MD, and Daniel W. Green MD, MS.

O'Donoghue Sports Injury Research Award
This award is given annually to the best overall paper that deals with clinical based research or human in-vivo research. In 2013 it is given to authors: Daryl C. Osbahr MD, E. Lyle Cain Jr, MD, B. Todd Raines MA, ATC, Dave Fortenbaugh PhD, Jeffrey R. Dugas MD, and James R. Andrews MD for their paper "Long-Term Outcomes after Ulnar Collateral Ligament Reconstruction in Competitive Baseball Players: Follow-up with a Minimum of 10 Years." The awardee is selected by the AOSSM Awards Subcommittee with recipients receiving $2,000.

Hughston Award
This year's recipients of the Hughston Award are Mohsen Hussein MD, Carola F. van Eck MD, Andrej Cretnik MD, PhD, Dejan Dinevski PhD, and Freddie H. Fu MD, for their paper "Prospective Randomized Clinical Evaluation of Conventional Single-Bundle, Anatomic Single-Bundle and Anatomic Double-Bundle Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: 281 Cases with 3-to 5-Year Follow-up." The award, chosen by a panel of AJSM editors and reviewers, is given to the most outstanding paper published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine and receives $5,000.

AJSM Systematic Review Awards
This year, a panel of AJSM editors and reviewers chose two papers and awarded each $5,000. The papers included, "Is Magnetic Resonance Imaging Reliable in Predicting Clinical Outcome After Articular Cartilage Repair of the Knee? A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis," by Tommy S. deWindt MD, Goetz H. Welsch MD, Mats Brittberg MD, PhD, Lucienne A. Vonk PhD, Stefan Marlovits MD, MBA, Siegfried Trattnig MD, and Daniel B.F. Saris MD, PhD, as well as "The Influence of Age on the Effectiveness of Neuromuscular Training to Reduce Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury in Female Athletes: A Meta-Analysis" by Gregory D. Myer PhD, FACSM, CSCS, Dai Sugimoto MS, ATC, CSCS, Staci Thomas, and Timothy E. Hewett PhD.

T. David Sisk Award for Best Original Research Paper
The winners were selected from the best papers in original research submitted to Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach. The award will include a $2,500 cash prize and a plaque. This year's winner is "Serum CTXii Correlates with Articular Cartilage Degeneration after Anterior Cruciate Ligament Transection or Arthrotomy followed by Standardized Exercise" by authorsChristian H. Coyle PhD, Sarah E. Henry MD, Amgad M. Haleem MD, Michael J. O'Malley MD, and Constance R. Chu MD.

T. David Sisk Award for Best Review Paper
The winners were selected from the best review papers submitted to Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach. The award will include a $2,500 cash prize and a plaque. This year's recipient is "Prospective Predictors of Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome: A Systematic Review with Meta-analysis" from authors Evangelos Pappas PT, PhD, OS, and Wing M. Wong-Tom PT, MS, OCS.

T. David Sisk Award for Best International Paper
The winners were selected from the best international papers submitted to Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach. The award will include a $2,500 cash prize and plaque. This year's winner of the best international research paper is "Clinical Outcomes and Return-to-Sports Participation of 50 Soccer Players After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Through a Sport-Specific Rehabilitation Protocol" by Stefano Della Villa MD, Lorenzo Boldrini MD, Margerita Ricci MD, Furio Danelon MD, Lynn Snyder-Mackler PT, ScD, FAPTA, Gianni Nanni MD, and Giulio Sergio Roi MD.