AnnualReport2020

Early consultation with a specialist is necessary when considering nerve transfers for improved function. Tracking a Child’s Growth Over the past few years, the Portland Shriners Hospital research team, led by William Horton, M.D., made an innovative discovery that impacts how physicians are able to track a child’s rate of growth. Through a simple finger-prick blood test, the research team discovered a protein (which they’ve named the biomarker CXM) that mirrors the child’s rate of bone growth. By using the biomarker CXM, physicians are able to quickly predict the rate of the child’s growth, and they can immediately make decisions about the medical care plan for their patients.

This past summer, the Scoliosis Research Society awarded Dr. Welborn with the Thomas E. Whitecloud Award for her work with the biomarker CXM. She won in the category of Best Basic Science Paper at the international meeting on advanced spine techniques in Amsterdam. “Until now, no one has figured out how to track growth as it is happening,” said Dr. Welborn. “We now have the ability to predict growth quickly. Think about how many lives this will change across the world!” The utility of biomarker CXM may also extend to managing other conditions, such as fracture healing, scoliosis, osteoarthritis and cancer, in adults as well as in children. Leaders in Burn Care David Greenhalgh, M.D., chief of burns at Shriners Hospitals for Children — Northern California and a past president of the American Burn Association, was expected to be installed as president of the International Society of Burn Injuries (ISBI) in August. Unfortunately, the August meeting has been moved to June 2021 because of the coronavirus situation, so Dr. Greenhalgh will not become its president until next year. A main purpose of the Society is to share information with its members in order to increase and improve burn prevention. The ISBI society has more than 1,000 members from 95 countries. Board certified by the American Board of Surgery, with added qualifications in surgical critical care, Dr. Greenhalgh manages all aspects of burn care at Shriners Hospitals for Children — Northern

published in the New England Journal of Medicine . The article focused on the principles and practices that lead to the best outcomes for patients with burn injuries. Dr. Greenhalgh and Tina Palmieri, M.D., assistant chief of burns, lead a multidisciplinary team that includes skilled reconstructive plastic surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurse practitioners, psychiatrists and psychologists, burn technicians, occupational and physical therapists, nutritionists, social workers, pharmacists, child life specialists, schoolteachers, and orthotists and prosthetists. They work in concert to maximize patients’ cosmetic and functional outcomes.

William Horton, M.D.

Since the discovery of the biomarker CXM, Michelle Welborn, M.D., has analyzed how this finger-prick blood test could help her provide the best care for patients who have scoliosis and other spine conditions. “Assessing a patient’s growth is a vital factor in determining the treatment for patients with scoliosis,” said Dr. Welborn. “By determining the rate of growth in real time, we can make sure that we are bracing patients for the correct amount of time, and that we are performing surgery at the optimal time. The utilization of biomarker CXM will enable us to build the best possible plan of treatment for patients, and it can minimize the amount of surgeries needed.”

California and at the University of California Davis, School of Medicine. Dr. Greenhalgh has

published and presented extensively in the areas of burn injury, burn care and burn prevention.

In 2019, an article by Dr. Greenhalgh,

Management of Burns , was

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