Vincent D. Pellegrini, Jr., MD, D ’77, MED ’79
Professor and Vice Chair for Education and Research Affairs, Department of Orthopaedics, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center; Immediate Past Chair, Faculty Council, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Vincent D. Pellegrini Jr., MD, D ’77, MED ’79 is a nationally recognized orthopaedic surgeon, educator, and academic leader whose career has been defined by clinical innovation, rigorous research, and a steadfast commitment to mentorship. Over more than four decades, he has advanced both the science and the human side of medicine, leaving a lasting impact on orthopaedics and medical education.
Dr. Pellegrini’s earliest and most enduring contribution has been the development and refinement of surgical techniques for basal joint arthritis of the thumb, now a mainstay of orthopaedic care. Equally transformative has been his role as principal investigator of the PEPPER Trial, a landmark $16.3 million randomized clinical study involving nearly 19,000 patients and funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute. Designed to identify the safest and most effective strategies for preventing pulmonary embolism following hip and knee replacement, trial analysis is underway with results anticipated by year end that have the potential to change practice standards worldwide.
In addition to his clinical and research achievements, Dr. Pellegrini has shaped academic orthopaedics as a department chair at Pennsylvania State University, the University of Maryland, and the Medical University of South Carolina, before joining Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center as vice chair for education and research affairs in 2019. He helped bring innovation to the operating room as well, leading the development of the Trilock Bone Preservation System for hip replacement, which became widely adopted after its release in 2008.
His prolific scholarship includes more than 160 peer-reviewed publications and research support totaling over $20 million. His work has been honored with three John Charnley Awards from The Hip Society and the Nicholas Andry Award from the Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons for career research achievement.
Yet Dr. Pellegrini regards education as his proudest legacy. Recognized with the American Orthopaedic Association’s Distinguished Clinician Educator Award in 2022, he has been especially dedicated to mentoring women in orthopaedics, guiding eight Geisel graduates into the field in the past five years alone. A former President of both the American Orthopaedic Association and The Hip Society, he chaired the Faculty Council at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth from 2021 to 2024, continuing to shape the future of the profession through leadership, inquiry, and inclusion.
Throughout a storied career defined by surgical precision, scientific rigor, and a dedication to advancing the field, Dr. Pellegrini has always been sustained by a sense of curiosity and service—a drive to ask “why,” to learn, and to empower those who follow. Even as his innovations and research shape orthopaedic medicine far beyond his own hands, he finds his greatest fulfillment not in awards or accolades, but in the personal notes of gratitude from patients, former students, colleagues, and the many he has mentored. For Dr. Pellegrini, the true measure of success has never been personal recognition, but the ripple effect of restoring function, inspiring others, and giving back more than he received.
Return to Alumni Awards Homepage