I am an Assistant Professor of Surgery in the Department of Surgery, Division of Acute Care Surgery and Trauma. I currently serve as the Trauma Medical Director at the Kessler Trauma Center.

I grew up in Central Pennsylvania and graduated from Juniata College in Huntingdon, PA where I ran cross-country and track and field. My interest in trauma care blossomed from my working as an emergency medical technician in my hometown during college and then from my experience as a medical student at University of Pennsylvania’s busy level one trauma center. I completed a seven-year general surgery residency at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN, which included two years working on a variety of research projects and helping to oversee the Nashville Veterans Affairs Medical Center wound care clinic. During that time, I also obtained my MBA from the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt. I finished my training with a two year trauma/surgical critical care fellowship back at the University of Pennsylvania.

My areas of interest/expertise include:

• Management of a spectrum of traumatic injuries
• Emergency general surgery
• Surgical critical care
• Resuscitation of the critically ill and injured
• Trauma team education and simulation
• Trauma performance improvement
• The use of whole blood and resuscitative endovascular balloon occlusion of the aorta (REBOA)

I am particularly interested in the use of trauma video review (the video-recording of trauma resuscitations) for use in trauma team simulation, education, research, and performance improvement.

I am board certified in general surgery and surgical critical care and am a member of the American College of Surgeons, Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma, Society of Critical Care Medicine, and American Association for the Surgery of Trauma.

Certified Specialties

Surgery (General Surgery) - American Board of Surgery

Faculty Appointments

Associate Professor - Department of Surgery, Acute Care (SMD)

Associate Professor - Department of Pediatrics (SMD) - Joint

Credentials

Residency & Fellowship

Fellowship, Surgery, Surgical Critical Care, Presbyterian Medical Center/University of Pennsylvania. 2017 - 2019

Residency, Surgery (General Surgery), Vanderbilt University Medical Center. 2011 - 2017

Internship, Surgery (General Surgery), Vanderbilt University Medical Center. 2010 - 2011

Education

MBA | Vanderbilt University. 2015

MD | Perelman School Of Medicine At The University Of Pennsylvania. 2010

Awards

Seymour I. Schwartz, MD Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award.

Publications

Journal Articles

Changes in multidisciplinary perceptions of trauma video review following implementation of a novel program: let us go to the tape.

Murray M, Rogers E, Dellonte K, Dumas RP, Vella MA

Trauma surgery & acute care open.. 2025 10 (1):e001621. Epub 01/11/2025.

Trauma video review through the legal lens: Improving care while minimizing risk.

Succar B, Vella MA, Holena D, Estroff J, Rule B, Rivera M, Studwell S, Shukla D, Dumas RP

The journal of trauma and acute care surgery.. 2024 September 6 Epub 09/06/2024.

Teamwork matters: The association between nontechnical skills and cardiac arrest in trauma patients presenting with hypotension.

Vella MA, Zone A, Succar B, Cheng M, Maiga AW, Appelbaum RD, Notario L, Pannell D, Holena DN, Dumas RP

Surgery.. 2024 June 175 (6):1595-1599. Epub 03/12/2024.

Navigating the challenges of vascular access in hypotensive injured patients.

Succar B, Vella MA, Holena DN, Dumas RP

Surgery.. 2024 February 175 (2):559-560. Epub 11/18/2023.

Percutaneous thoracostomy with thoracic lavage for traumatic hemothorax: a performance improvement initiative.

McLauchlan N, Ali A, Beyer CA, Brinson MM, Joergensen SM, Yelon J, Dumas RP, Vella MA, Cannon JW

Trauma surgery & acute care open.. 2024 9 (1):e001298. Epub 02/29/2024.

Medical Information During Trauma Resuscitations: Are Smartphones the Contemporary Medical ID Bracelet?

Rogers EJ, Reidlinger T, Loria A, Oplinger A, Raza SS, Gestring ML, Vella MA

The Journal of surgical research.. 2023 November 291 :313-320. Epub 07/26/2023.

Rethinking protocolized completion angiography following extremity vascular trauma: A prospective observational multicenter trial.

Niziolek G, Keating J, Bailey J, Klingensmith NJ, Moren AM, Skarupa DJ, Loria A, Vella MA, Maher Z, Moore SA, Smith MC, Leung A, Shuster KM, Seamon MJ

The journal of trauma and acute care surgery.. 2023 July 195 (1):105-110. Epub 04/11/2023.

Outcomes among trauma patients with duodenal leak following primary versus complex repair of duodenal injuries: An Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma multicenter trial.

Choron RL, Teichman AL, Bargoud CG, Sciarretta JD, Smith RN, Hanos DS, Afif IN, Beard JH, Dhillon NK, Zhang A, Ghneim M, Devasahayam RJ, Gunter OL, Smith AA, Sun BL, Cao CS, Reynolds JK, Hilt LA, Holena DN, Chang G, Jonikas M, Echeverria K, Fung NS, Anderson A, Fitzgerald CA, Dumas RP, Levin JH, Trankiem CT, Yoon JJ, Blank J, Hazelton J, McLaughlin CJ, Al-Aref R, Kirsch JM, Howard DS, Scantling DR, Dellonte K, Vella M, Hopkins B, Shell CH, Udekwu PO, Wong EG, Joseph BA, Lieberman H, Ramsey W, Stewart C, Alvarez C, Berne JD, Nahmias J, Puente I, Patton JH, Rakitin I, Perea LL, Pulido OR, Ahmed H, Keating J, Kodadek LM, Wade J, Henry R, Schreiber MA, Benjamin AJ, Khan A, Mann LK, Mentzer CJ, Mousafeiris V, Mulita F, Reid-Gruner S, Sais E, Marks J, Foote C, Palacio CH, Argandykov D, Kaafarani H, Coyle S, Macor M, Manderski MTB, Narayan M, Seamon MJ

The journal of trauma and acute care surgery.. 2023 July 195 (1):151-159. Epub 04/19/2023.

Evaluating emergency department tube thoracostomy: A single-center use of trauma video review to assess efficiency and technique.

Marinica AL, Nagaraj MB, Elson M, Vella MA, Holena DN, Dumas RP

Surgery.. 2023 April 173 (4):1086-1092. Epub 02/03/2023.

Open versus percutaneous tube thoracostomy with and without thoracic lavage for traumatic hemothorax: a novel randomized controlled simulation trial.

McLauchlan NR, Igra NM, Fisher LT, Byrne JP, Beyer CA, Geng Z, Schmulevich D, Brinson MM, Dumas RP, Holena DN, Hynes AM, Rosen CB, Shah AN, Vella MA, Cannon JW

Trauma surgery & acute care open.. 2023 8 (1):e001050. Epub 03/20/2023.

Under the Lens: Team Perception of Trauma Video Review.

Scrushy MG, Nagaraj M, Burke K, Kuhlenschmidt K, Jeter S, Johnson D, Brown K, Edwards C, Marinica A, Vella MA, Holena DN, Park C, Dumas RP

Journal of trauma nursing : the official journal of the Society of Trauma Nurses.. 2023 30 (3):171-176. Epub 1900 01 01.

Trauma video review outperforms prospective real-time data collection for study of resuscitative thoracotomy.

Rees JR, Maher Z, Dumas RP, Vella MA, Schroeder ME, Milia DJ, Zone AI, Cannon JW, Holena DN

Surgery.. 2022 November 172 (5):1563-1568. Epub 08/02/2022.

Early Chemoprophylaxis Against Venous Thromboembolism in Patients With Traumatic Brain Injury.

Rivas L, Vella M, Ju T, Fernandez-Moure JS, Sparks A, Seamon MJ, Sarani B

The American surgeon.. 2022 February 88 (2):187-193. Epub 01/27/2021.

Roll the Tape: Implementing and Harnessing the Power of Trauma Video Review.

Dumas RP, Cook C, Holena DN, Qi Y, Tabone N, Studwell SL, Miglani A, Vella MA

Journal of surgical education.. 2022 79 (6):e248-e256. Epub 09/10/2022.

Abdominal pain in an adult with congenital biliary atresia.

Herbst DA, Vella MA, Cannon JW

The journal of trauma and acute care surgery.. 2021 December 191 (6):e166-e167. Epub 1900 01 01.

An Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma multicenter trial examining prehospital procedures in penetrating trauma patients.

Taghavi S, Maher Z, Goldberg AJ, Chang G, Mendioloa M, Anderson C, Ninokawa S, Tatebe LC, Maluso P, Raza S, Keating JJ, Burruss S, Reeves M, Coleman LE, Shatz DV, Goldenberg-Sandau A, Bhupathi A, Spalding MC, LaRiccia A, Bird E, Noorbakhsh MR, Babowice J, Nelson MC, Jacobson LE, Williams J, Vella M, Dellonte K, Hayward TZ, Holler E, Lieser MJ, Berne JD, Mederos DR, Askari R, Okafor B, Haut ER, Etchill E, Fang R, Roche SL, Whittenburg L, Bernard AC, Haan JM, Lightwine KL, Norwood SH, Murry J, Gamber MA, Carrick MM, Bugaev N, Tatar A, Duchesne J, Tatum D

The journal of trauma and acute care surgery.. 2021 July 191 (1):130-140. Epub 1900 01 01.

A Different City's Experience with COVID-19 and Interpersonal Violence: Increased Support-Seeking but Decreased Service Use.

Burchard PR, Poleshuck EL, Yates EH, Cerulli C, Gestring ML, Vella MA

Journal of the American College of Surgeons.. 2021 June 232 (6):1018-1019. Epub 03/12/2021.

The incidence of venous thromboembolic events in trauma patients after tranexamic acid administration: an EAST multicenter study.

Rivas L, Estroff J, Sparks A, Nahmias J, Allen R, Smith SR, Kutcher M, Carter K, Grigorian A, Albertson S, Turay D, Quispe JC, Luo-Owen X, Vella M, Pascual J, Tororello G, Quattrone M, Bernard A, Ratnasekera A, Lee A, Tamburrini D, Rodriguez C, Harrell K, Jeyamurugan K, Bugaev N, Warner A, Weinberger J, Hazelton JP, Selevany M, Wright F, Kovar A, Urban S, Hamrick A, Mount M, Carrick M, Cullinane DC, Chang G, Jain G, Spalding C, Sarani B

Blood coagulation & fibrinolysis : an international journal in haemostasis and thrombosis.. 2021 January 132 (1):37-43. Epub 1900 01 01.

Unlocked yet untapped: The ubiquitous smartphone and utilization of emergency medical identification technology in the care of the injured patient.

Vella MA, Li H, Reilly PM, Raza SS

Surgery open science.. 2020 July 2 (3):122-126. Epub 04/12/2020.

Epidural catheters are associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism in trauma.

Vella MA, Dumas RP, Chreiman K, Wasser T, Smith BP, Reilly PM, Seamon MJ, Shiroff A

Journal of thrombosis and thrombolysis.. 2020 April 49 (3):420-425. Epub 1900 01 01.

Team Assessment and Decision Making Is Associated With Outcomes: A Trauma Video Review Analysis.

Dumas RP, Vella MA, Chreiman KC, Smith BP, Subramanian M, Maher Z, Seamon MJ, Holena DN

The Journal of surgical research.. 2020 February 246 :544-549. Epub 10/18/2019.

Long-term Functional, Psychological, Emotional, and Social Outcomes in Survivors of Firearm Injuries.

Vella MA, Warshauer A, Tortorello G, Fernandez-Moure J, Giacolone J, Chen B, Cabulong A, Chreiman K, Sims C, Schwab CW, Reilly PM, Lane-Fall M, Seamon MJ

JAMA surgery.. 2020 January 1155 (1):51-59. Epub 1900 01 01.

Trauma video review utilization: A survey of practice in the United States.

Dumas RP, Vella MA, Hatchimonji JS, Ma L, Maher Z, Holena DN

American journal of surgery.. 2020 January 219 (1):49-53. Epub 09/10/2019.

The REBOA Dissipation Curve: Training Starts to Wane at 6 Months in the Absence of Clinical REBOA Cases.

Hatchimonji JS, Sikoutris J, Smith BP, Vella MA, Dumas RP, Qasim ZA, Gallagher JJ, Reilly PM, Raza SS, Cannon JW

Journal of surgical education.. 2020 77 (6):1598-1604. Epub 07/30/2020.

Earlier time to tracheal intubation does not improve return of spontaneous circulation during in-hospital cardiac arrest.

Vella MA, Vasquez CR, Buckler D, Root S, Abella BS, Sims C

Resuscitation.. 2019 July 140 :29-30. Epub 05/08/2019.

Nanometric Considerations in Biofilm Formation.

Fernandez-Moure JS, Mydlowska A, Shin C, Vella M, Kaplan LJ

Surgical infections.. 2019 April 20 (3):167-173. Epub 01/31/2019.

Supporting the Educational, Research, and Clinical Care Goals of the Academic Trauma Center: Video Review for Trauma Resuscitation.

Vella MA, Dumas RP, Holena DN

JAMA surgery.. 2019 March 1154 (3):257-258. Epub 1900 01 01.

Intraoperative REBOA: an analysis of the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma AORTA registry.

Vella MA, Dumas RP, DuBose J, Morrison J, Scalea T, Moore L, Podbielski J, Inaba K, Piccinini A, Kauvar DS, Baggenstoss VL, Spalding C, Fox C, Moore EE, Cannon JW

Trauma surgery & acute care open.. 2019 4 (1):e000340. Epub 11/11/2019.

High-Flow Nasal Cannula System: Not Just Another Nasal Cannula.

Vella MA, Pascual-Lopez J, Kaplan LJ

JAMA surgery.. 2018 September 1153 (9):854-855. Epub 1900 01 01.

Acute Management of Traumatic Brain Injury.

Vella MA, Crandall ML, Patel MB

The Surgical clinics of North America.. 2017 October 97 (5):1015-1030. Epub 1900 01 01.

Rural Trauma Team Development Course decreases time to transfer for trauma patients.

Dennis BM, Vella MA, Gunter OL, Smith MD, Wilson CS, Patel MB, Nunez TC, Guillamondegui OD

The journal of trauma and acute care surgery.. 2016 October 81 (4):632-7. Epub 1900 01 01.

Identification of postoperative care amenable to telehealth.

Kummerow Broman K, Vella MA, Tarpley JL, Dittus RS, Roumie CL

Surgery.. 2016 August 160 (2):264-71. Epub 04/05/2016.

A Multidisciplinary Housestaff-Led Initiative to Safely Reduce Daily Laboratory Testing.

Iams W, Heck J, Kapp M, Leverenz D, Vella M, Szentirmai E, Valerio-Navarrete I, Theobald C, Goggins K, Flemmons K, Sponsler K, Penrod C, Kleinholz P, Brady D, Kripalani S

Academic medicine : journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges.. 2016 June 91 (6):813-20. Epub 1900 01 01.

Airway management following repair of cervical tracheal injuries: A retrospective, multicenter study.

Harvin JA, Taub EA, Cotton BA, Brocker J, Stein DM, Dilektasli E, Inaba K, Vella MA, Guillamondegui O, Kodadek LM, Haut ER, Evans CR, Weinberg JA, Goodman MD, Robinson BR, Holcomb JB

The journal of trauma and acute care surgery.. 2016 March 80 (3):366-70; discussion 370-1. Epub 1900 01 01.

Postoperative Telehealth Visits: Assessment of Quality and Preferences of Veterans.

Vella MA, Kummerow Broman K, Tarpley JL, Dittus RS, Roumie CL

JAMA surgery.. 2015 December 150 (12):1197-9. Epub 1900 01 01.

Residents as Educators: A Modern Model.

Kensinger CD, McMaster WG, Vella MA, Sexton KW, Snyder RA, Terhune KP

Journal of surgical education.. 2015 72 (5):949-56. Epub 07/02/2015.

Short simulation training improves objective skills in established advanced practitioners managing emergencies on the ward and surgical intensive care unit.

Pascual JL, Holena DN, Vella MA, Palmieri J, Sicoutris C, Selvan B, Fox AD, Sarani B, Sims C, Williams NN, Schwab CW

The Journal of trauma.. 2011 August 71 (2):330-7; discussion 337-8. Epub 1900 01 01.

Books

Evidence-Based Practice of Critical Care (2020)

Chapter: What Is Abdominal Compartment Syndrome and How Should It Be Managed?

Authors: Michael A. Vella and Lewis J. Kaplan

Publisher: Elsevier 2020

The Trauma Manual: Trauma and Acute Care Surgery (2020)

Chapter: Traumatic Brain Injury

Authors: Michael A. Vella, James M. Schuster, Jose L. Pascual

Publisher: LWW 2020

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