Research and Academic Productivity

Resident Research Requirements

Residents are expected to be academically productive appropriate to their level of training within the program. Junior residents are expected to work on case reports, book chapters, and/or assist senior residents with ongoing projects. Senior residents are expected to produce academic publications based on their laboratory and clinical experience prior to graduation from the program. Notably, residents have received the Synthes Award for Resident Research on Spinal Cord and Spinal Column Injury for three consecutive years for excellent clinical and laboratory work done during their research year.

Research Opportunities

The Neurosurgery Department has worked with several labs at Temple, covering a variety of areas in research. Some examples include:

Dr. Ronald Tuma, Department of Physiology:
Focus on investigations of inflammatory reactions that contribute to CNS injury following stroke, trauma or autoimmune disease via the use of experimental animal models.

Dr. Marla Wolfson, Department of Physiology
Focus on innovative strategies to mitigate traumatic  lung and brain injury and for the protection of the developing or mature lung from environmental or iatrogenic injury.

Dr. Weaver/Dr. Khalili, Departments of Neurosurgery/Neuroscience:
Several topics including molecular biology of neurotropic viruses in the brain, and a program in viral oncology focusing on CNS neoplasms.

Several clinical trials are also in progress at TUH under the guidance of the Neurosurgery faculty.