UNC Wilderness Medicine Program has a special focus on pioneering new treatments to improve performance and prevent injury in austere and extreme environments. Our program supports the larger UNC Sports Medicine Institute’s research program of clinical scientists who are pioneering new treatments using our state-of-the-art research facilities. Our researchers collaborate from across many departments and centers at UNC, including Exercise and Sport Science (Motion Science Institute, Applied Physiology Lab, Psychology of Sports Injury Lab), Orthopaedics, the Injury Prevention Research Center, the Thurston Arthritis Research Center, and the UNC/NCSU Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering.
Learn more about the UNC Sports Medicine Institute’s research.
Dr. Dave Berkoff (Director, UNC Sports Medicine Institute) claiming a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records for the World’s Highest Obstacle Course Race at Mount Everest, and then completing an “Absolute Total Descent of an OCR in One Day (10,000m)”! This involved trekking 12 days to the base of Everest, climbing to the competition site – Kala Pattar – at 18, 546 feet, race through a world-class obstacle course, trek back down, and then complete a marathon distance trail run to the town of Namche Bazaar. Dr. Berkoff used the unusual environment to contribute to research with the University of Bournemouth (UK). His work will provide critical insights into how altitude affects athletic performance and help develop standards for altitude sports training and safety. There are more pictures of this once-in-a-lifetime trip on the UNC Sports Medicine Institute’s social media on
Instagram.
