Paul Tornetta, MD, PhD
Professor, Orthopaedic Surgery
Biography
Dr. Paul Tornetta, III is Chief and Chair, Professor and Residency Program Director in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine and the Director of Orthopaedic Trauma for the Boston Medical Center. Dr. Tornetta received his bachelor’s degree in chemistry and mathematics from Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, Penn. He earned his medical degree from SUNY-Health Science Center at Brooklyn (NY), where he also completed his internship and residency in orthopaedic surgery, followed by a fellowship in Acetabular/Pelvic Fractures at the Hospital of the Good Samaritan in Los Angeles under Joel Matta, MD. He received his PhD from the University of Groningen, the Netherlands.
Dr. Tornetta has expertise in multicenter trials and trial methodology, serving on the executive committees of the SPRINT, FAITH, TRUST, and FLOW trials. He leads the Orthopaedic Trauma Research Consortium and was on the executive committee of the department of defense funded METRC consortium. He has lectured extensively worldwide on orthopaedic trauma, evidence-based literature application, and education. He has served on the faculty of more than 250 American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgery (AAOS) CME, Orthopaedic Trauma Association (OTA) and international symposia and skills courses as well as developing new educational programs for these organizations. An author of more than 300 peer-reviewed publications, Dr. Tornetta is also a lead editor for Rockwood and Green’s textbook on fracture care (an industry standard) and an editor of multiple other textbooks and textbook series. The AAOS’s new resident orthopaedic core knowledge curriculum (ROCK) was released under his co-editorship and guidance. He has contributed to the field with the development of new surgical techniques as well as implants.
Dr. Tornetta has served many roles for national and international orthopaedic associations. He has been the chair of multiple committees, served on the board, was Chair of the Council on Education for the AAOS, is a past president of the OTA and was an American British Canadian (ABC) traveling fellow. He is currently in the Presidential line for the AAOS and his Presidential year will be 2024-2025. The recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation clinical research award, Two Kappa Delta Awards, several BUSM Robert E. Leach Resident Teaching Awards and OTA Bovill Awards, Dr. Tornetta has been named a Castle Connolly Top Doctor every year since 1999 and Boston Magazine Top Doc since 2006.
Other Positions
- Chief and Chair, Orthopaedic Surgery, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Education
- SUNY Downstate Medical Center, MD
- Franklin & Marshall College, BA
Publications
- Published on 3/27/2024
Ricci WM, Dvorzhinskiy A, Zheng Y, Walker Z, Anthony M, Holbrook J, Jones B, Cartner J, Tornetta P. Locked plate constructs are not necessarily stiffer than nonlocked constructs: A biomechanical investigation of locked versus nonlocked diaphyseal fixation in a human cadaveric model of nonosteoporotic and osteoporotic distal femoral fractures. OTA Int. 2024 Jun; 7(2):e308. PMID: 38549842.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 3/8/2024
Flagstad I, Albright P, Pedri T, Kleinsmith RM, Schmidt A, Alley M, Westberg JR, Moreno AF, Henry G, Tatman LM, Obremskey WT, Tornetta P, Cunningham BP. Early Versus Delayed Definitive Fixation Relative to Fasciotomy Closure in High-Energy Tibial Plateau Fractures with Compartment Syndrome. J Orthop Trauma. 2024 Mar 08. PMID: 38466820.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 3/4/2024
Yendluri A, Megafu MN, Wang A, Cordero JK, Podolnick JD, Forsh DA, Tornetta P, Parisien RL. The Fragility of Statistical Findings in the Femoral Neck Fracture Literature: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials. J Orthop Trauma. 2024 Mar 04. PMID: 38442195.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 2/1/2024
Anderson E, Sing D, Pechero G, Hagar A, Dvozhinskiy A, Fraifogl J, Fischer D, Alqudhaya R, Baig MS, Bramlett K, Gary J, Mullis B, Ryan S, Marcantonio A, Leighton R, Ricci W, Vallier H, Horwitz D, Tornetta P. Hip Fracture Repair by the Post-Call Surgeon: A Multicenter Retrospective Review. J Am Acad Orthop Surg Glob Res Rev. 2024 Feb 01; 8(2). PMID: 38364105.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 2/1/2024
Van Rysselberghe NL, Seltzer R, Lawson TA, Kuether J, White P, Grisdela P, Daniell H, Amirhekmat A, Merchan N, Seaver T, Samineni A, Saiz A, Ngo D, Dorman C, Epner E, Svetgoff R, Terle M, Lee M, Campbell S, Dikos G, Warner S, Achor T, Weaver MJ, Tornetta P, Scolaro J, Wixted JJ, Weber T, Bellino MJ, Goodnough LH, Gardner MJ, Bishop JA. Retrograde Intramedullary Nailing Versus Locked Plating for Extreme Distal Periprosthetic Femur Fractures: A Multicenter Retrospective Cohort Study. J Orthop Trauma. 2024 Feb 01; 38(2):57-64. PMID: 38031262.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 1/16/2024
Dijkstra H, van de Kuit A, de Groot T, Canta O, Groot OQ, Oosterhoff JH, Doornberg JN, van den Bekerom M, Calderon SL, Colaris J, Duis KT, Esfahani SA, DiGiovanni C, Gordon M, Guss D, IJpma F, Jaarsma R, Janssen M, Jayakumar P, Kerkhoffs GM, Leighton R, van Munster B, Poolman R, Ring D, Schemtisch E, Stirler V, Tornetta P, Wijffels M. Systematic review of machine-learning models in orthopaedic trauma. Bone Jt Open. 2024 Jan 16; 5(1):9-19. PMID: 38226447.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 1/1/2024
Alley MC, Vallier HA, Tornetta P. Identifying Risk Factors for Osteonecrosis After Talar Fracture. J Orthop Trauma. 2024 Jan 01; 38(1):25-30. PMID: 37735752.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 8/24/2023
Megafu M, Megafu E, Mian H, Singhal S, Nietsch K, Yendluri A, Tornetta P, Parisien RL. The statistical fragility of outcomes in calcaneus fractures: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Foot (Edinb). 2023 Dec; 57:102047. PMID: 37672893.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 7/13/2023
Schemitsch EH, Kumar A, Heels-Ansdell D, Sprague S, Bhandari M, Guyatt G, Sanders DW, Swiontkowski M, Tornetta P, Walter S. Reamed compared with unreamed nailing of tibial shaft fractures: Does the initial method of nail insertion influence outcome in patients requiring reoperations? Can J Surg. 2023; 66(4):E384-E389. PMID: 37442585.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 7/1/2023
Shahien A, Likine EF, Soles G, Samborski S, Mehta SK, Ryan SP, Leroy TE, Mullis B, Spitler CA, Tornetta P. Not All Proximal Humerus Fractures Do Well Without Surgery: Anterior Translation Predicts the Need for Surgery. J Orthop Trauma. 2023 Jul 01; 37(7):366-369. PMID: 37074809.
Read at: PubMed
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