Elsa Pihl

I am a senior consultant in orthopaedic surgery at Danderyd Hospital and a postdoctoral researcher with a particular interest in hand and wrist injuries as well as sustainable healthcare. I obtained my PhD in 2024 at Karolinska Institutet with a thesis on the surgical and non-surgical treatment of proximal hamstring avulsions. The thesis was awarded the prize for best dissertation of the year 2024 by the Swedish Orthopaedic Association. Following my PhD, I was invited to serve as opponent for Anne van der Made’s doctoral thesis at the University of Amsterdam in 2025. One of the studies included in my thesis has also received awards for best article and poster at both national and international conferences.

After completing my PhD, I co-founded a research group together with Associate Professor Cecilia Mellstrand Navarro, the Danderyd Wrist and Hand Initiative (D-WHIN). The focus of our research group is to improve the treatment of common orthopaedic injuries through clinical research combined with analyses of cost-effectiveness and the environmental and climate impact of healthcare. I have been awarded several research grants during 2025 and 2026 and have received postdoctoral positions funded by Region Stockholm and the Swedish Research Council for Sport Science. I am the principal supervisor for two PhD students who began their doctoral training in 2026. In 2025, I was invited to lecture on sustainable healthcare at the annual meeting of the Swedish Orthopaedic Association. In 2026, I became a member of the Swedish Surgical Council’s working group on sustainable healthcare.

In addition to my research, I am clinically active as a senior consultant in the orthopedic hand surgery section at the Department of Orthopaedics at Danderyd Hospital. I am actively involved in education and supervision of residents and have served as Director of Studies for residency training at the department since 2021. I have completed several courses in clinical supervision, including “Leading for Change” at Karolinska Institutet.

In my work, I am passionate about advancing a more evidence-based, patient-centered, and sustainable orthopaedic care system.

Hand and wrist injuries. Sustainable health care. Sports medicine.