Research Award Details

Institution:

Shriners Hospital, Tampa, FL

Presentations & Publications:

The Huene Memorial Award has allowed Dr. Kim to complete two important projects. The first project was to develop a mouse model of osteonecrosis of distal femoral epiphysis using microsurgical dissection techniques. Prior to this study, no surgical model of osteonecrosis was available in mice. Through micro-dissection and micro-CT imaging, vascular anatomy of the distal femoral epiphysis was defined in mice. Subsequently, micro-surgical techniques were used to cauterize the vessels supplying the epiphysis to produce osteonecrosis. This new model will allow the use of genetically engineered mice to investigate various molecular mechanisms involved in the healing of the necrotic bone following ischemic injury. The second project supported by the Huene Award investigated the effects of non-weight bearing on the femoral head following ischemic osteonecrosis using immature pigs. This is the first study to investigate the effects of local non-weight bearing using a large animal model. The study found that local now-weight bearing is mechanically protective but biologically suboptimal following ischemic osteonecrosis. It increased bone resorption without increasing new bone formation. The findings may have important clinical implications for the patients being treated with local non-weight bearing for Perthes disease. Presentation: Annual Meeting of Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America, Denver, CO - Best Scientific Paper Award for podium presentation entitled “Effects of Non-Weight Bearing on the Immature Femoral Head Following Ischemic Osteonecrosis” Publication: Kim HKW, Aruwajoye O, Stetler J, Stall A. Effects of Non-Weight Bearing on the Immature Femoral Head Following Ischemic Osteonecrosis: Experimental Investigation in Immature Pigs. J Bone Joint Surg Am 94:2228-37, 2012.