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Louis Edwin DeFrate

Laszlo Ormandy Distinguished Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery
Orthopaedic Surgery
MSRB Room 379, Box 3093 DUMC, Durham, NC 27710
Room 379, Medical Sciences Research Building, Box 3093 Med. Ctr., Durham, NC 27710

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Laszlo Ormandy Distinguished Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery · 2023 - Present Orthopaedic Surgery, Clinical Science Departments
Professor in Orthopaedic Surgery · 2019 - Present Orthopaedic Surgery, Clinical Science Departments
Professor of Biomedical Engineering · 2020 - Present Biomedical Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering
Affiliate of the Duke Regeneration Center · 2021 - Present Duke Regeneration Center, Basic Science Departments
Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science · 2025 - Present Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Pratt School of Engineering

In the News


Published October 14, 2024
The Science Behind ACL: Why Women are Prone to a Debilitating Knee Injury
Published May 4, 2023
Duke Awards 44 Distinguished Professorships
Published April 18, 2018
Study Shows Men and Women Tear ACL the Same Way In Non-Contact Injury

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Recent Publications


The application of transfer learning to T1ρ MRI tibiofemoral cartilage segmentation.

Journal Article J Biomech · January 2026 Proteoglycans are critical to the ability of cartilage to withstand loading, and their concentration can be probed in vivo through measurement of T1ρ MRI relaxation times. Machine learning models have demonstrated the potential to replace manual segmentati ... Full text Link to item Cite

A deep learning-based approach for measuring patellar cartilage deformations from knee MR images.

Journal Article J Biomech · November 2025 While knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a leading cause of disability in the United States, OA within the patellofemoral joint is understudied compared to the tibiofemoral joint. Mechanical alterations to cartilage may be among the first changes indicative of ea ... Full text Link to item Cite

Resting Supine for 45 Minutes Yields Consistent Baseline Lumbar Intervertebral Disc Height in Asymptomatic Participants.

Journal Article Ann Biomed Eng · August 2025 PURPOSE: Intervertebral disc (IVD) height fluctuates diurnally as the spine is exposed to periods of high and low loading. Therefore, accounting for loading history prior to measuring in vivo IVD height is important when investigating IVD mechanics. Howeve ... Full text Link to item Cite
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Recent Grants


Boston Children's/UCLA/Duke Next Generation Regeneration for Osteoarthritis (BUD NextGenRegen for OA)

ResearchInvestigator · Awarded by Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health · 2024 - 2029

In vivo ACL mechanics and risk factors for injury

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases · 2024 - 2029

Mentoring in Musculoskeletal Pain Phenotypes

ResearchCollaborator · Awarded by National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases · 2022 - 2027

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Education, Training & Certifications


Massachusetts Institute of Technology · 2005 Sc.D.