(pictured above, from left to right: Tyler A. Gonzalez MD, MBA, faculty; SarahRose Hall fourth-year medical student; J. Benjamin Jackson III MD, MBA, faculty)

School of Medicine Columbia faculty members, Tyler Gonzalez, MD, and J. Benjamin Jackson III, MD, along with fourth-year medical student, SarahRose Hall, are part of a study team that looked at patients with insertional Achilles tendinopathy (IAT) who had a specific type of surgery called minimally invasive Zadek osteotomy (MIS ZO). Researchers wanted to see if the severity of IAT seen on MRI scans before surgery could predict how well patients would do after surgery. They analyzed 17 patients and found that pain scores improved for those with less severe IAT, but only patients with moderate IAT showed significant improvements in function and mobility. Most patients were very satisfied with their surgery, but the MRI findings didn't strongly predict the outcomes.

Learn more about the study:
Severity of Achilles Tendinopathy on Preoperative MRI and Short-term Functional Outcomes After Minimally Invasive Zadek Osteotomy.

Hall S, Lewis T, Kaplan JRM, Schipper ON, Vulcano E, Holly Johnson A, Lam P, Jackson JB 3rd, Gonzalez T. Foot Ankle Orthop. 2025 Mar 12;10(1):24730114251322775. doi: 10.1177/24730114251322775. eCollection 2025 Jan. PMID: 40078660