vol.07 Department of Orthopedic Surgery

The Department of Orthopedic surgery at Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine is a department with a proud history and tradition, even in Japan. Many professors have passed through the University doors over the years, and most major core hospitals in Hokkaido are related to our department. Employment following internship and sub-special training courses are promising, and places to practice their expertise gained at the University are provided.

In the Department of Orthopedic Surgery headed by Prof. Iwasaki, the students can enter to graduate school after their third year training program, and can perform advanced medical research under an enhanced guidance system. Research is largely divided into the clinical research department and basic research department. In the clinical research department, clinical study is promoted based on abundant cases and previous achievements, while providing the medical care of the highest level by six teams, namely upper extremities, lower extremities, hip joint, spine, tumor, and sports medicine. In the basic research department, research projects focus on bone and cartilage cellular and molecular biology, biomechanics, biochemistry, pharmacology, and tissue engineering.

"I always carry out research with the view of clinical application. I feel that filling in areas which are lacking in clinical practice, working on a theme to actively connect a new treatment method, and aiming for clinical development is important, even in basic research."

Prof. Iwasaki has personally been involved in various research projects on tissue engineering of the musculoskeletal system and glycobiological studies. He has successfully developed biomaterial (Scaffold) from highly purified naturally-derived materials, and a cartilage regeneration treatment, which applies this new material. In 2014, a cartilage repair drug, which takes advantage of seaweed-derived algin acid, was jointly developed with a pharmaceutical company, and was adopted as a Next Generation Technology Program (NexTEP) by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST).

Moreover, in clinical research of the upper extremities, Prof. Iwasaki has worked on the development of the first artificial hand joint in Japan, and the research achievement has been applied in clinical use. He carried out the investigator initiated clinical trial with the support from the Hokkaido Organization for Translational Research has also been carried out (October 2009 – June 2014).

"By thoroughly conducting research for 4 years and accumulating achievements including an English thesis, we train a person to become an orthopedic physician with high ability, as well as a researcher, and as a result, a person can become an orthopedic physician with both a researcher's mind and leadership ability. Hokkaido University Orthopaedic Department provides a unique environment where medical doctors can be deeply involved in both superior clinical practice and world level research.

"PhD students of the orthopedic research laboratory spend time collaborating with the researchers of different fields. In addition those from the School of Medicine, the door is opened to students from other faculties, universities, and overseas schools, so all persons interested in the orthopaedic field and wish to branch out into new fields, are welcome to enter this graduate school.