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Research

­­­The Fraser Orthopaedic Research Society (FORS) is a non-profit organization that has been partnering along-side the orthopaedic surgeons at Royal Columbian Hospital for over 25 years. Originally formed under the direction of Dr. Robert McCormack the organization started on a small scale and gradually developed into what it is now. Having participated in over 100 clinical studies, which include both investigator initiated studies and multi-center international sudies, it has contributed significantly to the lexicon of knowledge regarding orthopaedic practicies.

As a teaching institution, research has always been at the forefront of our practices and with the help of the Orthopaedic Surgeons at the fraser Orthopaedic Institute (FOI) the organization has been able to grow into what it is today. At any given time FORS is usually recruiting for 12 active studies, carrying out follow-up on approximately 6 additional studies, and finalizing development on at least 5 more additional studies. These studies are both trauma and elective studies, covering a wide range of pathologies, conditions, and injuries.

Some recent achivements include:

  • In 2021, the INSURT study completed enrollment, marking the completion of the teams first multi-center randomized control trial. Enrolling 248 participants across 5 sites located in Canada and Europe. As of 2022, one year follow-up results are being assessed and 2-year follow-up data is being collected.
  • In 2021, we completed enrollment for our own, in house, multi-center study looking at two surgical approaches to help reduce the incidence of anterior knee pain after tibial shaft fractures. As of 2022, all the data is being assessed and a final study paper is pending.
  • The orthopaeic surgeons also designed two studies; one of which is looking at the clinical outcomes of operative vs non-operative treatment of olecranon fractures, the second looking at clinical outcomes of proximal femur fractures fixed with the TFN-Advanced Nailing System, both of which started enrollment in Spring 2021.
  • In 2022, with the help of Dr. Parth Lodhia the research team was able to design and create a large multi-center registry that will allow the surgeons to collect important information regarding patient injury and treatment. With the assistance of willing participants the registry will be able to propel future research and discoveries within the oarthopaedics field.

A majority of clinical research is funded by working as co-investigators on grant applications with academic investigators with grants from various agencies, including Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Orthopaedic Trauma Association and Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), or with industry.

Although, in the last decade, remaining a relatively small team of four clinical research staff members, FORS, in the year 2020, made the decision to switch to including having students from the Simon Fraser University Co-Op Program join their research endeavours. This has been a wonderful partnership in which students are hired for 8 months as Clinical Research Assistants to gain hands-on experience in a clinical setting interacting with patients and surgeons.

Contributions to Past Large Clinical Trials:

  • REGAIN
  • ACL LET
  • FAITH I & II
  • HEALTH
  • FLOW
  • The PREP-IT Trial