A Leader in Brain Injury Research, Dr. Joe Maroon

It is said that success has a thousand fathers. While there is some truth to that statement, in that no one person ever accomplished anything great without the help from many, there is one individual who has made Pittsburgh an epicenter of success in brain injury research and treatment . . . Dr. Joseph C. Maroon.  But he will be the first to tell you that there were dozens, if not hundreds of people who played a huge role in making Pittsburgh one of the top brain centers in the country. And one of those who played a crucial role in brain research was none other than Coach Chuck Noll. 

 Dr. Maroon chairs the National Science Advisory Committee of the Chuck Noll Foundation for Brain Injury Research. He has guided our foundation in selecting a dozen outstanding, early stage research projects in Southwestern Pennsylvania. But long before his work with the foundation, Dr. Maroon has been on the cutting edge of brain injury treatment and research.

 As Professor and Vice Chairman, Heindl Scholar in Neuroscience Department of Neurological Surgery University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), Dr. Maroon has published over 285 peer reviewed papers, 58 book chapters and 6 books. In 2020, Dr. Maroon received the Physician Excellence Clinician of Courage award, given to one UPMC faculty out of 4,000. Going forward, the award will be known as the Joseph C. Maroon Clinician of Courage  Award.

 One of Dr. Maroon’s earliest contributions to brain injuries related to sports was his work with Dr. Mark Lovell in the development of the ImPACT test, now given to millions of amateur and professional athletes. Dr. Maroon served as the team neurosurgeon for the Pittsburgh Steelers for 30 years, well before any other team had a neurosurgeon. Chuck Noll was the coach who insisted that the team have a neurosurgeon.

 And now, Dr. Maroon is studying the science of brain imaging that can show structural changes that can occur with certain mental health illnesses. Here is a short video of Dr. Maroon talking about brain imaging and mental health illnesses.

 Pittsburgh would not be a leader in brain injury research and treatment if it wasn’t for this one in a thousand father’s of medical research. We thank you Dr. Maroon, and we thank you Chuck Noll.