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David Mooney, MD

Associate Professor of Surgery, Boston Children's Hospital

David P. Mooney, MD, MPH is Associate Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School. He obtained his medical degree from St. Louis University School of Medicine and completed a general surgical residency at the University of Vermont, where he completed research fellowship in surgical immunology. He completed a pediatric surgery fellowship at the Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri and obtained his Masters in Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health in 2006.

Dr. Mooney created the Pediatric Trauma Program at the Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth, and is currently the Director of the Trauma Center at Boston Children’s Hospital. He has been active on a variety of national committees including the American College of Surgeons, the American Pediatric Surgical Association, and the Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma. In addition, he was the Founding President of the Pediatric Trauma Society. He has served in several consultative and leadership positions for a variety of organizations, including the American College of Emergency Physicians, the Maternal Child Health Bureau’s Emergency Medical Services for Children, and the Massachusetts State Trauma Committee. He has conducted over 100 reviews of pediatric trauma centers in the United States and was instrumental in the development of pediatric trauma care systems in New Hampshire, New Mexico and Tuscany, Italy.

He is a reviewer for 16 journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine and the Journal of Trauma. He has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles and 12 book chapters, and has given over 300 lectures in a variety of settings. He has had continuous research funding for the past 12 years and has several active clinical research projects directed toward improving pediatric injury care. He has mentored over 35 surgical residents, many of whom have gone on to distinguished careers.

He is a retired Major in the US Army Medical Reserves and a former member of the National Disaster Medical Team that was the first US team to deploy in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake. He remains active in global surgical efforts. He played a pivotal role in the care of children injured after the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Other active clinic efforts include the investigation and amelioration of chronic abdominal wall pain and pilonidal disease.

Personally, he is happily married and has four adult children but no grandchildren, yet. He is an avid athlete who has run 5 marathons and is a black belt in martial arts. He prides himself on doing the bulk of his own home maintenance.

The sensitivity and negative predictive value of a pediatric cervical spine clearance algorithm that minimizes computerized tomography.
Authors: Authors: Arbuthnot M, Mooney DP.
J Pediatr Surg
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The value of official reinterpretation of trauma computed tomography scans from referring hospitals.
Authors: Authors: Onwubiko C, Mooney DP.
J Pediatr Surg
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Outcomes of pediatric patients with persistent midline cervical spine tenderness and negative imaging result after trauma.
Authors: Authors: Dorney K, Kimia A, Hannon M, Hennelly K, Meehan WP, Proctor M, Mooney DP, Glotzbecker M, Mannix R.
J Trauma Acute Care Surg
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Anterior Cutaneous Nerve Entrapment Syndrome in Children.
Authors: Authors: Bairdain S, Dinakar P, Mooney DP.
J Pediatr Surg
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Twenty-years of splenic preservation at a level 1 pediatric trauma center.
Authors: Authors: Bairdain S, Litman HJ, Troy M, McMahon M, Almodovar H, Zurakowski D, Mooney DP.
J Pediatr Surg
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Simple formulas to determine optimal subclavian central venous catheter tip placement in infants and children.
Authors: Authors: Stroud A, Zalieckas J, Tan C, Tracy S, Zurakowski D, Mooney DP.
J Pediatr Surg
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Pediatric blunt abdominal aortic injury and the use of intra-operative aortic ultrasound for surgical decision making.
Authors: Authors: Bairdain S, Modi BP, Kim HB, Mooney DP, Durkin E, Vakili K.
J Pediatr Surg
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Pediatric thoracic and abdominal trauma.
Authors: Authors: Gutierrez IM, Ben-Ishay O, Mooney DP.
Minerva Chir
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Impact of trauma system development on pediatric injury care.
Authors: Authors: Mooney DP, Gutierrez IM, Chen Q, Forbes PW, Zurakowski D.
Pediatr Surg Int
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Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) reduce costs in the management of isolated splenic injuries at pediatric trauma centers.
Authors: Authors: Gutierrez IM, Zurakowski D, Chen Q, Mooney DP.
Langenbecks Arch Surg
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