close biography

Dr. Zernicke came to the University of Michigan in October 2007 as a Professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, School of Kinesiology, and Department of Biomedical Engineering. He is the Center Director.

At the University of Calgary, he continues as an Adjunct Professor in the Faculties of Kinesiology and Medicine and Schulich School of Engineering.

Prior to beginning his University of Michigan appointment, he was Executive Director of the Alberta Bone and Joint Health Institute, and at the University of Calgary, he was Wood Professor in Joint Injury Research in the Faculty of Medicine, Professor and former Dean of the Faculty of Kinesiology, and Professor in the Schulich School of Engineering. He was Director of the Alberta Provincial CIHR Training Program in Bone and Joint Health, a combined graduate program of the University of Calgary and University of Alberta.

His baccalaureate was from Concordia University Chicago (1970), and his M.Sc. (1972) and Ph.D. (1974) were from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He joined UCLA in 1974 and was Chair of the Department of Kinesiology when he was recruited to Calgary in 1991. He received the UCLA Award for Distinguished Teaching, City of Calgary Community Achievement Award (Education), the University of Calgary Award for Outstanding Achievement in Graduate Supervision, and he was Alumnus of the Year for Concordia University, Chicago.

He was president of the Canadian, American, and International Societies of Biomechanics. He received research awards from NASA, the Society for Physical Regulation in Biology and Medicine, the American and International Societies of Biomechanics, Career Award from the Canadian Society for Biomechanics, and the Canadian Orthopaedic Research Society. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Society of Biomechanics, the American College of Sports Medicine, and American Academy for Kinesiology and Physical Education.

In part, his research has been supported by the Arthritis Society of Canada, Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research, Alberta Ingenuity Fund, Canadian Space Agency, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Canada Foundation for Innovation, Alberta Innovation and Science, Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Lew Reed Spinal Cord Injury Foundation, the Fraternal Order of Eagles (Alberta and Saskatchewan), National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Science Foundation, and National Institutes of Health.

His research focuses on: (1) the adaptation of bone to exercise, disuse, diet, and disease and (2) joint injury and post-traumatic osteoarthritis, and he has authored more than 570 peer-reviewed research publications and two books.

close biography

Dr. Wojtys is a Professor, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Michigan Medical Center. He is the head of the University of Michigan Sports Medicine Program and Medical Director of MedSport. He attended the University of Michigan Medical School, completed his graduate studies at the University of Michigan, and was a Fellow at Cincinnati Sportsmedicine with Dr. Frank Noyes.

Dr. Wojtys has authored more than 70 articles published in referred journals and has edited the book The ACL Deficient Knee. He recently accepted a position on the Board of Directors of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine. He is Editor-in-Chief of the Journal Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach.

In the past, he has served as Chairman of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine Research Committee and Program Committee, and the Arthroscopy Association of North America Research Committee. He currently serves on the NFL Injury and Safety Panel Committee.

Dr. Wojtys has twice been the recipient of the prestigious O’Donoghue Sports Injury Research Award and the Excellence in Research Award for his research in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries in female athletes. His sports medicine research is focused on the neuromuscular protection of the knee and ACL injuries in females.

close biography

James Ashton-Miller, Ph.D. is The Albert Schultz Collegiate Research Professor and Distinguished Research Scientist in the departments of Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, and Internal Medicine, and at the Institute of Gerontology. He directs the Biomechanics Research Laboratory in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and is an Associate Director of the BJIPR Center. He is internationally recognized for his research on balance, falls and mobility problems of older adults, birth-related injuries in women, back problems, and sports injuries.

A fall can be a devastating event for an elderly person: for example, 20 percent of those who fracture a hip die within a year, and another 20 percent never regain their mobility. So, every elderly person should know how to reduce their risk of hip fracture and other serious injuries when they fall. Yet the current state of affairs is that 34 million Americans over 65 years do not know how to do this, and therefore essentially are defenseless. Dr. Ashton-Miller and his students are working on an inexpensive public health intervention to correct this state of affairs. They are also working on the effect of multitasking on mobility in the elderly, and also on the causes of some time of falls in at-risk patients.

Dr. Ashton-Miller directs an NIH-sponsored Specialized Center of Research project to identify the biomechanics risk factors for maternal injury during vaginal birth. Some 10–15 percent of first-time mothers are injured. These injuries are thought to lead to 11 percent of U.S. women requiring operative treatment at some time during their lives. Working closely with colleagues in gynecology he has invented a device to measure pelvic floor muscle strength and developed methods to quantify and treat stress urinary incontinence. He and his students developed the first 3D computer model of the pelvic floor and used it to identify a major cause of birth-related injuries that are visible on MR scans.

Dr. Ashton-Miller has graduated more than 15 doctoral students, and published more than 150 papers and 10 book chapters. He has served as a study section member for NIH and CDC, and reviews for CHIR, MRC, the Wellcome Trust, and several other international funding agencies. He serves on the editorial boards of Clinical Biomechanics and the American Journal of Physical Medicine, is an elected fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering and the Gerontological Society of America, is a past president of the American Society of Biomechanics, and served as Meeting Chair for the 2008 North American Congress on Biomechanics.

close biography

Bruce S. Miller, M.D., M.S. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Michigan. He serves as Team Physician for the University of Michigan Athletic Department, Eastern Michigan University Athletic Department, the US Ski Team, and the USA Rugby Team. He is also the Director of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery’s Sport Medicine Fellowship Program.

Dr. Miller earned his medical degree from Harvard University Medical School, and completed his orthopaedic surgery residency training at the Harvard Combined Residency Program. Dr. Miller completed fellowship training in Shoulder and Elbow Surgery in Sydney, Australia and in Orthopaedic Sports Medicine at the Steadman Hawkins Clinic in Vail, Colorado. Dr. Miller recently completed a master’s degree in Clinical Research Design and Statistical Analysis from the University of Michigan School of Public Health.

Dr. Miller’s research interests include clinical outcomes of sports medicine surgery of the shoulder and knee as well as cartilage injury and repair.

close biography

Dr. Riann M. Palmieri-Smith is an Assistant Professor in Athletic Training, Movement Science, and Orthopaedics at the University of Michigan. Dr. Palmieri-Smith is also the Director of the Neuromuscular Research Laboratory and Co-Director of the Human Neuromechanics Laboratory at University of Michigan.

Dr. Palmieri-Smith earned her Bachelor of Science in Education with a specialization in Athletic Training from California University of Pennsylvania, her Master of Science in Athletic Training at Indiana State University, and her Doctor of Philosophy in Sports Medicine at the University of Virginia. Her research is aimed at understanding the neuromuscular consequences of knee and ankle injury and the role of sports injury in the development of degenerative joint disease. A productive researcher, she has had 33 peer-reviewed publications and more than 30 regional and national scientific presentations in the last five years. Since arriving at the University of Michigan she has secured several intramural and extramural grants to support her research, totaling over $200,000.

The National Athletic Trainers’ Association Research and Education Foundation have honored Dr. Palmieri-Smith with the David H. Perrin Dissertation Award given in recognition of outstanding doctoral student research and most recently, with the Freddie H. Fu Young New Investigator Award given to a scientist who has made significant contributions to the body of knowledge in athletic training within five years of obtaining their doctoral degree. Additionally, Dr. Palmieri-Smith serves as a Section Editor for the Journal of Athletic Training in the Pathology, Physiology, and Biodynamics section and is a guest reviewer for 10 other journals.