Grants We Funded
Grant applicants for the 2023 cycle requested a total of nearly $4 million dollars. The PSF Study Section Subcommittees of Basic & Translational Research and Clinical Research evaluated nearly 140 grant applications on the following topics:
The PSF awarded research grants totaling over $1 million dollars to support nearly 30 plastic surgery research proposals.
ASPS/PSF leadership is committed to continuing to provide high levels of investigator-initiated research support to ensure that plastic surgeons have the needed research resources to be pioneers and innovators in advancing the practice of medicine.
Research Abstracts
Search The PSF database to have easy access to full-text grant abstracts from past PSF-funded research projects 2003 to present. All abstracts are the work of the Principal Investigators and were retrieved from their PSF grant applications. Several different filters may be applied to locate abstracts specific to a particular focus area or PSF funding mechanism.
Fat Retention in Diabetics after Pedal Fat Grafting
Principal Investigator
Jeffrey Gusenoff MD
Jeffrey Gusenoff MD
Year
2014
2014
Institution
University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
Funding Mechanism
Pilot Research Grant
Pilot Research Grant
Focus Area
General Reconstructive
General Reconstructive
Abstract
Plantar fat pad atrophy in diabetics can lead to long term pedal problems such as forefoot pain, callus formation, or ulceration, ultimately leading to osteomyelitis and amputation. The use of autologous fat to augment the plantar fat pad under the metatarsals in diabetics has not been objectively examined. One of the biggest pitfalls of fat grafting is the resorption of the fat, and the factors determining adipose tissue retention have yet to be established. Consequently the adipose tissue retention rates described in the literature vary between 25 and 80%. In conjunction with a clinical trial investigating the benefits of fat grafting on well-controlled diabetics with plantar fat pad atrophy, this study aims to identify histological and molecular adipose tissue properties that are correlated with a high adipose tissue retention rate. The long-term objective is to determine whether enrichment of adipose tissue, prior to injection, may be necessary to allow it to resemble adipose tissue known to have a high retention rate.
The study is a randomized cross-over design of 30 patients, 15 receiving fat grafting immediately and 15 after a year of conservative therapy. Plantar pedal pressures will be assessed by a pedobarograph and tissue thickness will be measured by ultrasound. Concurrent fat samples from the subjects will undergo an elaborate laboratory analysis. Adipose tissue retention (tissue thickness) will be evaluated by ultrasound at consistent time points. In the laboratory, the number of Adipose-Derived Stem Cells (ASCs) per unit of volume will be determined. The inherent ASCs-dividing potential as well as the inherent potential to become mature adipocytes will be assessed. The concentration of certain structural proteins, such as collagen, will be quantified as well as the concentration of factors related to the vasculature in the adipose tissue. Finally, using a multivariable statistical model, this study will identify those examined variables that are closely correlated to a high adipose tissue retention rate.
This innovative study will improve collaborative efforts between plastic surgery, podiatry, foot and ankle surgery, and stem cell biologists. The data of this study will allow plastic surgeons to better estimate the effects of fat grafting on diabetics and factors influencing resorption, ultimately allowing for further studies to see whether augmenting the fat is necessary to optimize outcomes in the diabetic population.
Plantar fat pad atrophy in diabetics can lead to long term pedal problems such as forefoot pain, callus formation, or ulceration, ultimately leading to osteomyelitis and amputation. The use of autologous fat to augment the plantar fat pad under the metatarsals in diabetics has not been objectively examined. One of the biggest pitfalls of fat grafting is the resorption of the fat, and the factors determining adipose tissue retention have yet to be established. Consequently the adipose tissue retention rates described in the literature vary between 25 and 80%. In conjunction with a clinical trial investigating the benefits of fat grafting on well-controlled diabetics with plantar fat pad atrophy, this study aims to identify histological and molecular adipose tissue properties that are correlated with a high adipose tissue retention rate. The long-term objective is to determine whether enrichment of adipose tissue, prior to injection, may be necessary to allow it to resemble adipose tissue known to have a high retention rate.
The study is a randomized cross-over design of 30 patients, 15 receiving fat grafting immediately and 15 after a year of conservative therapy. Plantar pedal pressures will be assessed by a pedobarograph and tissue thickness will be measured by ultrasound. Concurrent fat samples from the subjects will undergo an elaborate laboratory analysis. Adipose tissue retention (tissue thickness) will be evaluated by ultrasound at consistent time points. In the laboratory, the number of Adipose-Derived Stem Cells (ASCs) per unit of volume will be determined. The inherent ASCs-dividing potential as well as the inherent potential to become mature adipocytes will be assessed. The concentration of certain structural proteins, such as collagen, will be quantified as well as the concentration of factors related to the vasculature in the adipose tissue. Finally, using a multivariable statistical model, this study will identify those examined variables that are closely correlated to a high adipose tissue retention rate.
This innovative study will improve collaborative efforts between plastic surgery, podiatry, foot and ankle surgery, and stem cell biologists. The data of this study will allow plastic surgeons to better estimate the effects of fat grafting on diabetics and factors influencing resorption, ultimately allowing for further studies to see whether augmenting the fat is necessary to optimize outcomes in the diabetic population.
Biography
Dr. Jeffrey Gusenoff is an Associate Professor of Plastic Surgery in the Department of Plastic Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. He is originally from Newton, Massachusetts and completed both his undergraduate and medical degrees at the Johns Hopkins University. He then completed his surgical internship and plastic surgical residency at the University of Rochester, in Rochester NY. After his formal training, Dr. Gusenoff elected to complete a fellowship in Post-Bariatric Body Contouring at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA.
Dr. Gusenoff was the founder and Director of the University of Rochester Medical Center Life After Weight Loss Program from 2008-2012. The multidisciplinary program aimed to meet the body contouring needs of patients who have changed their lives through significant weight loss. He was the recruited by UPMC to join the Department of Plastic Surgery as Co-Director of the Life After Weight Loss Program with Dr. J. Peter Rubin. Dr. Gusenoff is also the Director of the Fellowship in Post-Bariatric Body Contouring Surgery and Director of Medical Student Education in Plastic Surgery at UPMC.
Dr. Gusenoff has won numerous academic awards and written several peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, mostly related to body contouring surgical techniques, safety, and social issues. Dr. Gusenoff is also involved in several clinical research projects at the UPMC. He is very active in the community and is Co-Director of the BodyChangers program, which is a support group and lifestyle program to aid in weight loss maintenance.
Dr. Jeffrey Gusenoff is an Associate Professor of Plastic Surgery in the Department of Plastic Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. He is originally from Newton, Massachusetts and completed both his undergraduate and medical degrees at the Johns Hopkins University. He then completed his surgical internship and plastic surgical residency at the University of Rochester, in Rochester NY. After his formal training, Dr. Gusenoff elected to complete a fellowship in Post-Bariatric Body Contouring at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA.
Dr. Gusenoff was the founder and Director of the University of Rochester Medical Center Life After Weight Loss Program from 2008-2012. The multidisciplinary program aimed to meet the body contouring needs of patients who have changed their lives through significant weight loss. He was the recruited by UPMC to join the Department of Plastic Surgery as Co-Director of the Life After Weight Loss Program with Dr. J. Peter Rubin. Dr. Gusenoff is also the Director of the Fellowship in Post-Bariatric Body Contouring Surgery and Director of Medical Student Education in Plastic Surgery at UPMC.
Dr. Gusenoff has won numerous academic awards and written several peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, mostly related to body contouring surgical techniques, safety, and social issues. Dr. Gusenoff is also involved in several clinical research projects at the UPMC. He is very active in the community and is Co-Director of the BodyChangers program, which is a support group and lifestyle program to aid in weight loss maintenance.