Orthopedic Clinical Effectiveness Research Center | Hand and Upper Extremity Research

The Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Department's Hand and Orthopedic Upper Extremity Program is dedicated to the comprehensive care of all upper limb conditions in infants, children, and adolescents. Under the direction of Peter M. Waters, MD, and Donald S. Bae, MD, patients with congenital, neuromuscular, sports-related, oncologic, and traumatic or post-traumatic conditions of the upper extremity receive multi-disciplinary care involving occupational and physical therapy, splinting and casting, and reconstructive surgery.

In addition, the Hand and Orthopedic Upper Extremity Program is committed in its efforts to improve clinical care through continued clinical and basic science research. Along with its leadership in the field of brachial plexus birth palsy, the Hand and Upper Extremity Program has continued to study the treatment of a wide variety of upper limb conditions, including:

• instability of the sternoclavicular and glenohumeral joints of the shoulder
• post-traumatic stiffness and deformity of the elbow
• surgical correction of forearm deformity following previous fracture
• ligament and/or cartilage injuries of the wrist
• the use of microsurgical techniques in reconstructive surgery for congenital upper extremity differences
• the use of microsurgical techniques in reconstructive surgery following limb salvage for bone and soft-tissue tumors
• reconstruction of the congenitally deficient hand

Many of these investigations have resulted in national and international presentations or peer-reviewed medical publications, and all have increased our ability to provide the highest standard of patient care.