Orthobiologics for Sports Medicine Physicians: Bridging the Gaps

About This Grant

PROJECT SUMMARY The mission of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) is to be the pre-eminent organization for primary care sports medicine in the United States. In the past six years, the AMSSM Collaborative Research Network (CRN) has developed and hosted three research summits to highlight research needs, best practices, and resources on pertinent topics in sports medicine to its membership. Tangible outcomes from these summits have included peer-reviewed manuscripts, national and international presentations on summit conclusions, and the creation of collaborative research groups to further research in these areas. In April 2026, the AMSSM CRN, housed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, plans to host a research conference titled Orthobiologics for Sports Medicine Physicians: Bridging the Gaps. The use of orthobiologics treatments in the field of sports and exercise medicine (SEM) is a complex topic, and their use remains polarizing among sports medicine physicians. Many sports medicine physicians have adopted orthobiologics into their practice, while others remain on the fence regarding their clinical efficacy or are simply unsure of how to approach the often-complex process of adding orthobiologics to their clinical repertoire. Indeed, the evolving clinical hypotheses on which orthobiologics clinical studies are predicated, the inherent heterogeneity of conditions treated, and the sheer volume of published studies in this area in recent years make it, perhaps, one of the most difficult and nuanced areas of current practice in sports medicine. This research conference will be held as a pre-conference to the AMSSM’s Annual Meeting in Seattle, Washington on April 23rd and 24th, 2026. Before the conference, writing groups will work on a synthesis of current research and identify knowledge gaps within their topic areas for presentation at the research conference. Topic areas include platelet-rich plasma for tendinopathy, platelet-based therapies for muscle injuries, and cell-based therapies for osteoarthritis, all areas of high relevance to the clinical practice of sports medicine. The research conference itself will include several sessions, including basic science and translation talks, and allow for thoughtful interaction and open-ended discussion via a consensus-building process to identify future research priorities. The research conference aims to attract 300 multi-disciplinary individuals, and results will be disseminated through academic journals, websites, social media postings, and podcasts. After the conference, conference leaders will synthesize the consensus-building process research priority-setting results to finalize a consensus statement on AMSSM-identified research priorities in orthobiologics for the clinical practice of sports medicine. These research priorities will be essential for sports medicine physicians looking to provide clarity to health care providers and their patients on the appropriate use of orthobiologics.