New Faculty Focus: Pam Lang

Name:  Pamela J. Lang

Title: Assistant Professor, Pediatric Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, Department of Orthopedics & Rehabilitation, UW School of Medicine and Public Health

Hometown: Madison

Educational/professional background: I received a bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology-Exercise Science 2005 from UW–Madison, and later worked as a Licensed Athletic Trainer for UW Health. Received Medical Degree from University of Illinois College of Medicine in 2010; Residency in Orthopedic Surgery at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, NC (2010-2015); Pediatric Orthopedic Surgery Fellowship – Orthopaedic Institute for Children/UCLA in Los Angeles (2015-2016); Orthopedic Sports Medicine Fellowship – Boston Children’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School (2016-2017)

How did you get into your field of research? In practice, I take care of injured kids every day and I see the impact a fracture or other injury has on their lives when they are not able to play with their friends or participate in sports.  Osteochondritis dissecans is a condition I treat that I find extremely challenging and for patients, it can be debilitating. Through my field of research in bone health, injury prevention, and osteochondritis dissecans pathophysiology and treatment, I hope to learn how we can keep kids healthy, active and doing the things they love.

What attracted you to UW–Madison? For me, returning to UW–Madison was a chance to come home.  Now more than ever, I realize the impact of UW–Madison on me growing up in this community.  Things have come full circle for me and now I get to collaborate with some extraordinary people and in a way give back to a school that gave me so much.

What was your first visit to campus like? My first visit to campus was as a child when my family would go to the Memorial Union Terrace.  As a kid I loved going there to watch the boats and of course, eat ice cream.

What’s one thing you hope students who take a class with you will come away with? My classroom is a combination of my clinic and operating room.  Of course I hope students I work with learn musculoskeletal pathology and clinical exam skills, but I also hope they come away with an understanding that our job as physicians for children is not just to provide medical care, but also to help empower them to understand their health conditions.

Do you feel your work relates in any way to the Wisconsin Idea? Through my work and research, I strive to care for children so they develop and maintain strong bones and bodies and are able to maintain active lifestyles.

What’s something interesting about your area of expertise you can share that will make us sound smarter at parties? Overuse injuries make up half of all the sports injuries in middle and high school aged kids.

Hobbies/other interests: I enjoy running and have qualified for and completed the Boston Marathon twice – Madison is a great running city.