American Medical Society for Sports Medicine
For Immediate Release Apr 29, 2018

Dr. Jillian Sylvester Announced as Winner of Inaugural Shark Tank Research Competition

The American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM) announced Jillian Sylvester, MD as the winner of its inaugural Collaborative Research Network (CRN) Shark Tank Research Competition, which sought innovative research proposals from AMSSM members addressing the management of osteoarthritis.

Through a competitive scientific process, the CRN released a call for proposals inviting submissions for this $25,000 research grant competition and invited three finalists to present their research proposals at the AMSSM Annual Meeting on April 27th, 2018 in Orlando, Florida.

CRN Leadership Committee member Andy Peterson, MD said the CRN’s objective in organizing this research initiative was to foster research that has the potential to inform the clinical practice of AMSSM members.

“The CRN aimed to create a way for members to engage with the CRN and to provide an exciting platform for sharing research ideas,” Dr. Peterson said. “Osteoarthritis is a strong area of interest for the CRN and is an area in which the CRN wishes to grow membership expertise and research productivity.

“Moreover, OA is a medical condition that nearly all sports medicine physicians see in their practices and thus has strong relevance across the membership.”

The first year of the Shark Tank initiative was deemed a success by event organizers, AMSSM audience members and shark tank competitors. Dr. Sylvester was chosen as the winner based on a combination of audience votes, shark votes and an in-depth evaluation of the proposals by a scientific review committee.

Dr. Sylvester’s proposal — “Use of a Self-Guided Mindfulness Mobile Application to Improve Pain Outcomes in Individuals with Knee Osteoarthritis”— was an audience favorite and ultimately deemed the winner of the research grant award.

Principal Investigator Dr. Jillian Sylvester stated, "The Shark Tank competition was a phenomenal experience.  My co-investigators and I were thrilled to present our idea and honored to be selected from a pool of exceptional proposals."

The AMMSM Foundation and CRN gratefully acknowledges Sanofi Biosurgery for their research grant in support of the Shark Tank program. 

About the AMSSM Annual Meeting: The 2018 conference brings more than 2,000 sports medicine physicians together from throughout the United States and around the world. The meeting theme is REACH: Reaching Up, Reaching Out, Reaching Ahead and explores the many ways AMSSM is leading the charge and shaping the future of sports medicine.

About the AMSSM: AMSSM is a multi-disciplinary organization of more than 3,600 sports medicine physicians dedicated to education, research, advocacy and the care of athletes of all ages. The majority of AMSSM members are primary care physicians with fellowship training and added qualification in sports medicine who then combine their practice of sports medicine with their primary specialty. AMSSM includes members who specialize solely in non-surgical sports medicine and serve as team physicians at the youth level, NCAA, NFL, MLB, NBA, WNBA, MLS and NHL, as well as with Olympic and Paralympic teams. By nature of their training and experience, sports medicine physicians are ideally suited to provide comprehensive medical care for athletes, sports teams or active individuals who are simply looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle. www.amssm.org