UCSF Orthopaedic Experts to Present Pioneering Research and Surgical Advances at AAOS 2025

SD

UCSF orthopedic surgery experts will present groundbreaking research and advanced surgical techniques at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons’ 2025 Annual Meeting, a leading conference on musculoskeletal health, held March 10-14 in San Diego. (COURTESY PHOTO)

Annual Meeting to Feature Cutting-Edge Techniques, Breakthrough Research, and Innovative Treatments

SAN FRANCISCO (March 10, 2025) – The UCSF Department of Orthopaedic Surgery is pleased to announce its lineup of orthopedic surgery experts who will present pioneering research and advanced surgical techniques at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons’ 2025 Annual Meeting, scheduled for March 10-14 in San Diego.

This year’s program features clinical presentations as well as research findings by several of the Department's faculty. For the full schedule of all presentations, please visit AAOS abstracts. Highlights from this year's meeting include: 

Kappa Delta Elizabeth Winston Lanier Award 

AAOS has awarded Brian T. Feeley, MD, FAAOS, the 2025 Kappa Delta Elizabeth Winston Lanier Award, for his pioneering work on muscle degeneration in rotator cuff injuries. 

Dr. Feeley, an orthopaedic surgeon, professor of orthopaedic surgery and chief of the Division of Sports Medicine and Shoulder Surgery at UCSF, has conducted research over the last 15 years that has uncovered the biological mechanisms behind fatty infiltration, a process that leads to muscle atrophy and can limit recovery after rotator cuff repair. In collaboration with UCSF’s Xuhui Liu, MD, a leading expert in muscle biology, this research provided critical insights into how muscle degeneration occurs at a cellular level and has opened the door to potential new treatments aimed at promoting muscle regeneration and improving surgical outcomes. 

The annual award is of the highest honors in orthopaedic research and recognizes groundbreaking research achievements in musculoskeletal disease or injury with significant potential to improve patient care. 


Symposia

Monday, March 10 from 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Nicholas Colyvas, MD, FAAOS, an orthopedic sports medicine surgeon and UCSF professor of Orthopaedic Surgery presents “Repair of Bucket Handle Meniscus Tear” during the symposium, Buckets, Ramps, Roots, Radial Tears, and Meniscus Allograft Transplantation– Management of Complex Meniscal Pathology

This symposium will provide an overview of complex meniscal pathology and highlight surgical repair techniques with a focus on pearls that can be implemented immediately.

Dr. Colyvas also serves as moderator for the technical skills session “Meniscus Repair: Guidelines and Techniques to Save the Meniscus” on Wednesday, March 12 from 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.


Paper Presentations

Monday, March 10 from 8:00 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.

Alan Zhang, MD, FAAOS, orthopaedic surgeon and medical director of the UCSF Orthopaedic Institute, presentsLanguage Analysis Predicts Surgical Recommendation Prior to Surgeon Evaluation: An Analysis of 2,954 Pre-Visit Patient Questionnaires” during the session Sports Medicine Papers I

This paper found that a pretrained LLM efficiently predicted recommendation for surgical intervention from questionnaire and MRI data prior to surgeon evaluation, suggesting value as a clinical decision support tool.

Monday, March 10 from 11:12 a.m. – 11:16 a.m.

Brian T. Feeley, MD, FAAOS, orthopaedic surgeon and chief of the UCSF Division of Sports Medicine and Shoulder Surgery, presents “Effectiveness of Non-operative Treatment in Patients with Glenohumeral Osteoarthritis: A Prospective Cohort Study” during the session Shoulder and Elbow Papers I

This study showed that non-operative treatment of GHOA has limited effectiveness and only meaningfully improved symptoms in 31% of patients. Physical therapy was not associated with clinical improvement.


Clinical Research Poster Sessions

Monday, March 10 at 7:00 a.m.

e214 – “Race affects the rate of reoperation in primary but not revision total knee arthroplasty” in Adult Reconstruction Knee ePosters

Jeffrey Wing Kee Kwong, MD, MS, a fourth-year UCSF orthopaedic surgery resident physician, is first author for a retrospective cohort study that found racial disparities appeared to be more pronounced in primary TKAs than in revision TKAs.

Senior Author: Erik Nathan Hansen, MD, FAAOS, UCSF

e379 – “Rate of Compartment Syndrome after Tibial Tubercle Fractures in Pediatric Patients” in Pediatrics ePosters

Alex H Youn, BA, a medical student at UCSF, is first author for this study which demonstrates that pediatric tibial tubercle fractures disproportionately occur in males and shows that compartment syndrome is an important, non-negligible complication of these injuries. 

Senior Author: Ishaan Swarup, MD, FAAOS, UCSF

e391 – “Pediatric radial head ossification occurs in eccentric fashion” in Pediatrics ePosters

Hannah May Reen Chi, MS, a UCSF medical student, is first author for a study that shows in MRIs of 66 patients, radial head ossification occurs eccentrically and does not correlate with age. Eccentric radiocapitellar alignment persists to skeletal maturity but sagittal offset is small.

Senior Author: Ishaan Swarup, MD, FAAOS, UCSF

e400 – “Will Medicare's Bundled Payments Program Threaten Patient Access? Early Experience with BPCI-A (Bundled Payments for Care Improvement-Advanced) for Internal Fixation of the Hip and Femur” in Practice Management/Rehabilitation ePosters

Justin K Solarczyk, MD, a second-year UCSF orthopaedic surgery resident physician, is first author for this study which finds that with current risk stratification, hospitals may be less incentivized to participate in BPCI-A, compromising the goals and sustainability of coordinated value-based care.

Senior Author: Heather Roberts, MD, UCSF

e503 – Long-Term Results of Reverse Total Shoulder Arthroplasty: Survival, Radiographic, Functional, and Clinical Outcomes with Over 10 Years of Follow-up” in Shoulder and Elbow ePosters 

Shotaro Watanabe, MD, PhD, a visiting scholar at UCSF, is first author of a study showing the outcomes of RTSAs with a minimum follow-up period of 10 years were favorable, with a good ROM, ASES score, and survival rate (10-year rate: 92.1%).

Senior Author: C. Benjamin Ma, MD, FAAOS, UCSF

e698 – “Preoperative Hip Injection Response Does Not Reliably Predict 2-Year Postoperative Outcomes Following Hip Arthroscopy for Femoroacetabular Impingement” in Sports Medicine ePosters

Alan Zhang, MD, FAAOS, orthopaedic surgeon and medical director of the UCSF Orthopaedic Institute, is first author of this study which finds preoperative injection response with either corticosteroid or local anesthetic did not predict 2-year outcomes after hip arthroscopy in patients with FAIS.

Senior Author: Stephanie Erin Wong, MD, FAAOS, UCSF

e702 – “Delayed Hip Arthroscopy for Femoroacetabular Impingement Syndrome Does Not Increase Risk of Revision Hip Arthroscopy or Conversion to Total Hip Arthroplasty But Does Increase Rates of Chronic Opiate Use” in Sports Medicine ePosters

Kian Niknam, MD, a UCSF resident physician, is first author for this study which shows delayed surgery for FAIS does not increase revision or conversion rates but does increase the odds of extended opiate use after surgery.

Senior Author: Alan Zhang, MD, FAAOS, UCSF

Wednesday, March 12 at 7:00 a.m.

P205 – “Assessing the Trends and Risk Factors of Operative Versus Non-Operative Management of Achilles Tendon Ruptures: A National Database Cohort Study” in Foot and Ankle Poster Session 2

Alex H. Youn, BA, medical student at UCSF in the Feeley-Liu Lab, is first author of this study demonstrating that various demographic variables and risk factors are significantly associated with operative management of ATRs over time with a recent trend towards operative management.

Senior Author: Daniel Thuillier, MD, UCSF


Instructional Course Lectures

Arthroplasty,  Monday, 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Erik N. Hansen, MD, FAAOS.

122 – When Necessary, Reconstruct It (during Managing the Patella in Revision Knee Surgery)

Sports Medicine, Tuesday, 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. 

Drew Lansdown, MD

210 – Optimizing Outcomes in Revision Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Surgery 

Sports Medicine, Wednesday, 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. 

Nicholas Colyvas, MD, FAAOS

328 – Meniscus Repair: Guidelines and Techniques to Save the Meniscus

Sports Medicine, Thursday, 8:00 to 9:30 a.m. 

Drew Lansdown, MD

412 – Diagnosis and Management of Patellofemoral Cartilage Injuries

General, Monday, 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. 

Brian T. Feeley, MD (moderator)

Excelling in an Orthopaedic Career: Expert Advice from Cradle to Grave

Trauma, Monday, 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m

Utku Kandemir, MD, FACS (moderator)

184 – Management of Proximal Humerus Fractures in 2025 

Tuesday, 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

Utku Kandemir, MD, FACS (moderator)

211 – How to Manage Fracture Related Infection - Knowledge of prevention and management of infection is key to fracture care in order to provide improved patient care and minimize the healthcare burden.

David W. Lowenberg, MD, FAAOS presents Management of Chronic FRI

Friday, March 14, Orthopaedic Trauma Association (OTA) and Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America (POSNA) Specialty Society Program

Saam Morshed, MD, PhD, MPH, FAAOS, presents “Open vs. Closed Reduction for Young Femoral Neck Fractures” from 10:05 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.

###