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OTRF Helps People Stay Active and Healthy

Educational opportunities, research programs, unbiased information and instructional materials created, hosted and implemented for patients, consumers, medical students, athletic trainers, athletes, physicians, healthcare clinicians and injured workers

Dr. Steven Chudik, board certified orthopaedic surgeon and sports medicine physician with the Steven Chudik Shoulder & Knee Injury Clinic, Westmont, Illinois, founded the Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine Teaching and Research Foundation (OTRF) in 2007. OTRF is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to funding research and education to keep people active and healthy.

As a nonprofit organization, OTRF programs and research rely solely on the support and generosity of individuals and organizations. If you, or someone you know, might be interested in making a contribution to help continue the educational programs in place and further orthopaedic research, OTRF has several options you might consider.Support OTRF >>

Dr. Chudik saw a growing demand from patients, athletic trainers and clinicians for up-to-date medical information and unbiased research on the prevention and treatment of shoulder, knee and sports injuries to the musculoskeletal system—joints, cartilage, tendons, ligaments, etc. In response to these requests, OTRF:

Produces and distributes a monthly e-newsletter, Active Bones.
Shares information about health performance-related issues, exercise and nutrition.
Hosts internships, research and career development opportunities and clinical residency programs for athletic trainers, undergraduate, pre-med and med students.
Conducts sports medicine conferences for healthcare providers and communities.
Sponsors and conducts orthopaedic research to find better treatment options for shoulder, knee and sports injuries.

Lives Improved

Already, OTRF has impacted the lives of thousands of individuals locally, across the United States and around the globe through the Foundation’s work and research. Countless more lives are improved daily by those who were trained and educated through the educational programs and research of Dr. Chudik and OTRF.

Programs such as OTRF’s athletic trainer residency that trains educates, and provides a hands-on experience so they are qualified to work in clinical roles treating and caring for patients, and SOAR (Students interested in Orthopaedic Research), that expose undergraduate, pre-med, and medical students to orthopaedic surgery and research by exploring the fields of clinical practice and medical research are like tree branches that grow and spread. When added to the hundreds of patients Dr. Chudik sees and treats annually, the injury prevention programs and e-newsletter OTRF produces, and the educational conferences, lectures, and presentations Dr. Chudik gives to healthcare providers, coaches, and community members, the OTRF outreach not only touches numerous people today, but incalculable more for generations to come.

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Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine Teaching and Research Foundation presents research at national, international meetings

It is not the Academy Awards, but being selected by peers to present research at professional medical meetings and conferences, or have your research published, is as close as it gets for physicians. Like the Oscar, getting one selection a year is outstanding, but to receive six—as in the case of Dr. Steven Chudik this past year—it is an exceptional accomplishment. Four Orthopaedic Surgery and Sports Medicine Teaching and Research Foundation (OTRF) research projects conducted by Dr. Steven Chudik and honors medical students from Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine and Rosalind Franklin School of Medicine, were presented at national or international annual conferences to more than 8,000 physicians and one was accepted for publication.

According to Dr. Steven Chudik, founder and president of OTRF, the organization’s research has been presented and published many times in the past. “What most people don’t realize is that research goes on all around us every day in all fields, not just medicine,” said Dr. Chudik. “With OTRF research projects, we evaluate and improve patient care by conducting clinical outcome research. Through these efforts we continue to gain a understanding of anatomy, injury and healing; basic sciences; and we innovate and create new technology to develop less invasive and more effective surgical procedures, surgical instruments and implants,” he explained.

The OTRF-sponsored research projects chosen for presentation are:

Osteochondral Repair with Synthetic Plugs Increases the Coefficient off Friction and Damages the Opposing Cartilage Counterface, presented by Rosalind Franklin medical student, Aaron Baessler, to the International Cartilage Repair Society, Chicago.
Pre-Operative Video Education Has a Positive Impact on Patient Arthroscopic Surgical Experience But May Not Improve Satisfaction Scores, presented by Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine medical student, Greg Barton, to the International Cartilage Repair Society, Chicago.
A Biomechanical and Clinical Comparison of Midshaft Clavicle Fixation Performed with Either Two or Three Screws on Each Side of the Plate, presented by Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine medical students, Christopher Larsen and Brian Sleasman, to the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine, Orlando, FL.
Osteochondral Repair with Synthetic Plugs Increases the Coefficient off Friction and Damages the Opposing Cartilage Counterface, presented in Lyon, France at the International Cartilage Repair Society.
A Biomechanical and Clinical Comparison of Midshaft Clavicle Fixation Performed with Either Two or Three Screws on Each Side of the Plate, presented by Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine medical students, Christopher Larsen and Brian Sleasman, to the joint meeting of the American Society for Clinical Investigation and Association of American Physicians (ASCI/APP), Chicago.

The OTRF-sponsored research recently chosen for publication in Arthroscopy: The Journal of Arthroscopic and Related Surgery is:

Transhumeral portal for arthroscopic glenohumeral resurfacing procedures: A cadaveric study of the safety and accuracy, written by Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine medical student, Kim Bartosiak.

A complete list of active and past OTRF-sponsored research can be accessed by clicking the OTRF Research tab above.