Skip to main content
Sign In

Home Future StudentsCurrent StudentsFaculty & StaffPatientsAlumni

Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Banner Image
 

Susan Ladley-O'Brien, MD

Associate Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

Contact

   Phone: 303-436-7878
   Fax:      303-436-7380
   E-mail: susan.ladley-o'brien@dhha.org

Affiliations
   Denver Health Medical Center

Certifications
   Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Spinal Cord Injury
   Level II Accreditation, Colorado Division of Workers Compensation

Traumatic Brain Injury, Spinal Cord Injury, Polytrauma and Spasticity

Interests

Neurotrauma rehabilitation

Activities

Traumatic Brain Injury and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder- Exploration of a Potential Combination Syndrome
Role:  Co- investigator
Principal investigator:  Lisa Brenner, PhD
Time and amount:  <5% effort.  50 K Grant
Funding source:  Colorado Brain Injury Trust fund. 7/05- 7/07. 

Northern California Traumatic Brain Injury Model System of Care
Project:  Impact of Post Traumatic Seizures
Principal Investigators:  Tamara Bushnik PhD, Thao Duong, MD and Jeffrey Englander MD of Santa Clara Valley Medical Center
Role:  Site director- responsible for COMIRB approval and supervision of data collection
Time and amount:  <2% donated.  Total direct costs of multi center project $365K. 
Funding source:  Department of Education, National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (#H133A020524)

Rocky Mountain Regional Traumatic Brain Injury Model System
 Role:   Denver Health liaison / clinical coordinator
Co-project directors are Gale Whiteneck PhD and Cynthia Harrison-Felix PhD of Craig Hospital. 
Time and amount:  in kind. 
Funding source:  Department of Education, National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, 2007-12.  Total direct costs of multi site project $427K

Immediate and prolonged effects of a 10-week non-fatiguing maximal effort exercise protocol on strength in deconditioned men and women with multiple sclerosis:  A multi-center study
Principal Investigator:  Michael Kuchera, DO
Role:  Site director, responsible for COMIRB approval, consent, data collection and supervision of project execution.
Time and amount:  <5% effort.  Total direct costs of multi center project $1640K.
Funding source:   United States Department of Defense DASW01-02-C-0045 March 2003- June 2005. 

 

Medical School: University of Colorado Denver

Residency: University of Colorado Denver

Fellowship: Craig Hospital

 

Papers Published in Peer Reviewed Journals:

1.  Lisa A. Brenner, PhD; Jeanne E. Dise-Lewis, PhD; Sarah K. Bartles, MA;  Susan E. O’Brien, MD; Matthew Godleski, MD; Marilyn Selinger, PhD

The Long Term Impact and Rehabilitation of Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury:  A 50 Year Follow Up Case Study.  J Head Trauma Rehabil 22:1 56-64, 2007. 

2.  Lisa A. Brenner, PhD, ABPP, Susan Ladley-O’Brien, MD, Beeta Homaifar, PhD, Christopher M. Filley, MD, James P. Kelly, MD, Jeri E.F. Harwood, PhD, Lawrence E. Adler, MD

An Exploratory Study of Neuroimaging, Neurologic, and Neuropsychological Findings in Veterans with Traumatic Brain Injury and/or Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.  Military Medicine 174, 4:347, 2009.

3.  Bahraini, Nazanin, PhD, Lisa A. Brenner, PhD, ABPP, Beeta Homaifar, PhD, Susan Ladley-O’Brien, MD, Christopher M. Filley, MD, James P. Kelly, MD, Jeri E.F. Harwood, PhD, Lawrence E. Adler, MD.  Utility of the Trauma Symptom Inventory for the Assessment of Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms in Veterans with a History of Psychological Trauma and/or Brain Injury.  Military Medicine 174, 10:1005-9, 2009.

 

Textbook Contributions:

4.  Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Editors: Nathan Zasler, Jeffrey Kreutzer, John DeLuca, and Bruce Caplan- contributor of six entries to the Medical Evaluation section.  In press, anticipated publication early 2010

 

Abstracts:

5.  Kuchera ML, Dombroski RT, Vardy T, Thomas F, O’Brien S, Yagnik P, Wenzel K, Stoll S, Stouch S, Wallin MT. Immediate and prolonged effects of a 10-week non-fatiguing maximal effort exercise protocol on strength in deconditioned men and women with multiple sclerosis:  A multi-center study (abstract), JAOA 107(8):342, (Aug 2007).

6.  Kuchera ML, Dombroski RT, Vardy T, Thomas F, O’Brien S, Yagnik P, Wenzel K, Stoll S, Stouch S, Wallin MT. Immediate and prolonged effects of a 10-week maximal effort exercise (with valsalva) protocol on cognition in men and women with multiple sclerosis: A multi-center study (abstract), JAOA 107(8):341-342, (Aug 2007).