Rhode Island Hospital
Online Newsroom
 Michael
Ehrlich, MD
Michael Ehrlich, MD, is surgeon-in-chief of orthopedics
at Rhode Island Hospital and its Hasbro Children's Hospital, as
well as The Miriam Hospital in Providence, RI. He also serves as
the Vincent Zecchino Professor and chairman of the department of
orthopaedics and rehabilitation at Brown Medical School.
Ehrlich is an investigator on a research project funded by the
Department of Veterans Affairs to restore arm and leg function to
amputee soldiers from the Iraq war. A pioneer in using the Ilizarov
leg lengthening surgery, Erhlich will apply this technique to amputees
to improve the fit of a prosthesis and optimize ease and range of
movement. He is also involved in conducting basic cellular research
aimed at speeding bone healing after surgery.
In 2003, Ehrlich performed a first-of-its kind procedure to grow
bone in the leg of a 9-year-old boy born without a fibula. By using
bone marrow cells from the patient's pelvis, combined with demineralized
bone matrix, Ehrlich succeeded in growing bone alongside cartilage
in the patient's leg. Without this procedure, the conventional option
might have been amputation.
For nearly two decades, Ehrlich's work with handicapped children
has received national recognition. His work in transferring muscles
and tendons has helped many children walk for the first time, and
he is a nationally known expert for clubfoot surgery.
Prior to joining Rhode Island Hospital, Ehrlich was at Harvard
Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, where he was
the chief of pediatric orthopaedics for 18 years. Ehrlich is a graduate
of Dartmouth College and Columbia University College of Physicians
and Surgeons. His orthopaedic residency was followed by a pediatric
orthopaedic/research fellowship at the Hospital for Joint Diseases.
He has published approximately 200 articles, abstracts and chapters,
and has been recognized with numerous awards.
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