Mass General Brigham Announces First Medical Director for Sports Medicine

Dr. Augustus (Gus) Mazzocca, an internationally renowned shoulder and elbow specialist specializing in complex shoulder and elbow diagnoses, has been named the first Medical Director for Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine. Dr. Mazzocca will also serve as the Director of the Bioskills, Biomechanics and Cell Biology Laboratories within the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital. 

Dr. Mazzocca previously served as Director of the UConn Musculoskeletal Institute and a Professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at UConn Health. 

“Dr. Mazzocca is a globally recognized leader in sports medicine and shoulder surgery. He has a long history of fostering a vibrant lab and is highly regarded as a dedicated educator and consummate collaborator. We are honored he has joined us as the inaugural Medical Director of Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine,” said Dr. Mitchel Harris, Chairman of the Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Mass General Hospital and leader of the Mass General Brigham search committee.

During his career, Dr. Mazzocca has published in 250 peer-reviewed journal articles and served on numerous leadership positions in professional societies within the sports medicine field. He is a member of the prestigious American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons Society (ASES), as well as being a member of the European Society for Surgery of the Shoulder and Elbow (ESSSE). Dr. Mazzocca and colleague Jon J.P. Warner, MD, co-founded the New England Shoulder and Elbow Society, a regional society dedicated to educating and researching problems related to the shoulder and elbow. 

Dr. Mazzocca is also a noted educator with a passion for mentorship and collaboration having served on numerous masters and PhD committees and mentored hundreds of fellows, residents and other graduate students over his long career. He also was the founder and director of the Human Soft Tissue Research lab at the UConn Musculoskeletal Institute.

“Dr. Mazzocca brings both strong clinical expertise and a diverse research portfolio to Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine that elevates our entire division to an even stronger leadership position in our field,” said R. Scott Gassett, Vice President of Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine. “We are proud to have Dr. Mazzocca to lead our division and enable the patients we serve to get the very best care and reach their fullest potential.” 

Dr. Mazzocca’s research interests include a clinical focus on shoulder instability and arthritis, elbow and rotator cuff injury and repair, and shoulder surgery outcomes. Local, national, and international collaborations are extremely important to Dr. Mazzocca’s research efforts and a mainstay of the labs he directs. Dr. Mazzocca has patents on processes designed to improve healing of rotator cuff repairs, as well as devices that aid in shoulder joint reconstruction.

Dr. Mazzocca will work closely with Dr. Christian Lattermann, Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine Research Director and Dr. Pete Asnis, Mass General Brigham Director of Pro Sports, to advance Mass General Brigham’s reputation and goals on a regional and national level. 

Mass General Brigham Sports Medicine provides clinical services to the Boston Bruins, New England Patriots and New England Revolution, as well as numerous Division I college programs including Boston College Athletics and high school athletic programs throughout Massachusetts and New Hampshire. To learn more about sports medicine programs and services from Mass General Brigham visit sportsmedicine.massgeneralbrigham.org.

Media Contact

Mass General Brigham:
Tim Sullivan tsullivan11@partners.org