Matthew O. Dolich
Biography
Matthew O. Dolich, M.D., F.A.C.S., is Health Sciences Clinical Professor of Surgery and Director of the Trauma Intensive Care Unit in the Division of Trauma, Burns, Critical Care & Acute Care Surgery at the University of California, Irvine Medical Center. He also serves as Director of both the Surgical Critical Care Fellowship and the Acute Care Surgery Fellowship. Dolich received his M.D. from the State University of New York at Stony Brook School of Medicine and completed fellowships in Surgical Critical Care and Trauma Surgery at the University of Miami School of Medicine/Jackson Memorial Medical Center. He is board certified in General Surgery and Surgical Critical Care.
Dolich has held numerous administrative and educational leadership positions at UC Irvine, including serving as Assistant Dean of Graduate Medical Education from 2016 to 2023 and Director of the General Surgery Residency Program from 2005 to 2016. During his tenure as residency program director, he mentored over 60 general surgery residents to completion. He has been elected to the American College of Surgeons Academy of Master Surgeon Educators and received multiple teaching awards, including the John E. Connolly Award for Excellence in Teaching and the GME Outstanding Program Director Leadership Award.
Dolich has authored or co-authored over 110 peer-reviewed journal articles and numerous book chapters, and has co-edited three textbooks on trauma and acute care surgery. His clinical and research interests focus on trauma resuscitation, critical care management, and surgical education. He serves on multiple hospital and medical school committees and has been active in global health initiatives through the American College of Surgeons Operation Giving Back program, including work in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Fiji, as well as hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico.
Return to topEducation
- B.A. in Biology, Princeton University, 1988
- M.D., State University of New York at Stony Brook School of Medicine, 1992
Distinctions
- Fellow, American College of Surgeons, Academy of Master Surgeon Educators, 2019-2024
- GME Service Award, 2023
- John E. Connolly Award for Excellence in Teaching, 2003
- GME Leadership Award, 2012
- GME Outstanding Program Director Leadership Award, 2016
- Best Doctors In America™, 2018
- Golden Scalpel Teaching Award, UC Irvine College of Medicine Class of 2003, 2003
- UCI College of Medicine Award for Excellence in Teaching, 2004
- Golden Scalpel Teaching Award, UC Irvine College of Medicine Class of 2004, 2004
- Outstanding Teacher Award, University of Arizona College of Medicine Class of 2001, 2000
Areas of Expertise
- Trauma and Acute Care Surgery
- Surgical Critical Care Management
- Blunt Cerebrovascular Injury
- Damage Control Resuscitation
- Surgical Stabilization Rib Fractures
- Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis
- Laparoscopic Trauma Techniques
Recent Publications
- Nie J., Nahmias J., Lekawa M., Barrios C., Swentek L., Schubl S., Dolich M., Grigorian A., “Beyond Injury: Length of Stay and Rehabilitation Disparities in Houseless Trauma Patients” (opens in new tab), Journal of Surgical Research, vol. 323, pp. 102-109, 2026.
- Aryan N., Grigorian A., Nahmias J., Dolich M., Lekawa M., Nie J., Schubl S.D., “Impact of obesity on outcomes of surgical stabilization of rib fractures” (opens in new tab), Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, vol. 100, pp. 54-59, 2026.
- Li J, Nahmias J, Lekawa M, Dolich M, Burruss S, Park F, Grigorian A, “Navigating Risk: A Comprehensive Study on Pedestrian-Vehicle Collision Factors” (opens in new tab), Journal of Surgical Research, vol. 305, pp. 322-330, 2025.
- Jebbia M, Nahmias J, Schubl S, Dolich M, Lekawa M, Kong A, Grigorian A, “Propensity matched analysis of DPA or DPL used within the first hour for severely hypotensive blunt trauma patients” (opens in new tab), Surgery Open Science, vol. 24, pp. 1-4, 2025.
- Epstein L, Johnson N, Nahmias J, Schubl S, Inaba K, Matsushima K, Lekawa M, Dolich M, Grigorian A, “Emergency Department Placed Central Lines for Trauma Patients: A Retrospective Case Control Study on CLABSI Risk from Central Lines placed Emergently in the ED” (opens in new tab), Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians Open, vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 100047, 2025.
- Hegazi M, Nahmias J, Lekawa M, Dolich M, Kong A, Barrios C, Grigorian A, “Risk factors and timing of fasciotomy for isolated pediatric lower extremity trauma” (opens in new tab), American Surgeon, vol. 91, pp. 998-1005, 2025.
- Nahmias J., Stopenski S., Jebbia M., Atallah S., Kirby K.A., Alvarez C.A., Aryan N., Tay-Lasso E., Dolich M., Lekawa M., Swentek L., Santos J., Schubl S., Kuza C., Nguyen N., Grigorian A., “Dexmedetomidine for Analgesia in Nonintubated Patients with Traumatic Rib Fractures: A Randomized Clinical Trial” (opens in new tab), JAMA Surgery, vol. 160, pp. 1047-1056, 2025.
- Noori E., Lee A.T., Santos J.W., Grigorian A., Dolich M.O., Burruss S.K., Kuza C.M., Nahmias J.T., “A Single-Center Evaluation of a Novel Hollow Viscus Injury Prediction Score for Abdominal Seatbelt Sign” (opens in new tab), American Surgeon, vol. 91, pp. 1658-1664, 2025.
- Hunter D., Nahmias J., Aryan N., Dolich M., Swentek L., Bagga A., Grigorian A., “The Hidden Toll: Demographic Changes in Suicide Attempts During the Coronavirus Disease-19 Era” (opens in new tab), Journal of Surgical Research, vol. 313, pp. 509-515, 2025.
- Kaler K, Vernez SL, Dolich M, “Minimally Invasive Hernia Repair in Robot-assisted Radical Prostatectomy” (opens in new tab), Journal of Endourology, vol. 35, no. 6, pp. 895, 2021.
Most Cited Publications
- Dolich MO, McKenney MG, Varela JE, Compton RP, McKenney KL, Cohn SM, “2576 ultrasounds for blunt abdominal trauma” (opens in new tab), Journal of Trauma Injury Infection and Critical Care, vol. 50, no. 1, pp. 108-112, 2001.
- Malinoski DJ, Jafari F, Ewing T, Ardary C, Conniff H, Baje M, Kong A, Lekawa ME, Dolich MO, Cinat ME, Barrios C, Hoyt DB, “Standard prophylactic enoxaparin dosing leads to inadequate anti-Xa levels and increased deep venous thrombosis rates in critically ill trauma and surgical patients” (opens in new tab), Journal of Trauma Injury Infection and Critical Care, vol. 68, no. 4, pp. 874-80, 2010.
- De Virgilio C, Yaghoubian A, Kaji A, Chung R, Collins JC, Deveney K, Dolich M, Easter D, Hines OJ, Katz S, Liu T, Mahmouhd A, Melcher ML, Parks S, Reeves M, Salim A, Scherer L, Takanishi D, Waxman K, “Predicting performance on the American Board of Surgery qualifying and certifying examinations: 1a multi-institutional study” (opens in new tab), Archives of Surgery, vol. 145, no. 9, pp. 852-856, 2010.
- Hong JJ, Cohn SM, Perez JM, Dolich MO, Brown M, McKenney MG, “Prospective study of the incidence and outcome of intra-abdominal hypertension and the abdominal compartment syndrome” (opens in new tab), British Journal of Surgery, vol. 89, no. 5, pp. 591-6, 2002.
- Masoomi H, Nguyen NT, Dolich MO, Mills S, Carmichael JC, Stamos MJ, “Laparoscopic appendectomy trends and outcomes in the United States: data from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS), 2004-2011”, American Surgeon, vol. 80, no. 10, pp. 1074-7, 2014.
- Huerta S, Bui TD, Nguyen TH, Banimahd FN, Porral D, Dolich MO, “Predictors of mortality and management of patients with traumatic inferior vena cava injuries”, American Surgeon, vol. 72, no. 4, pp. 290-296, 2006.
- LeBlang SD, Dolich MO, “Imaging of penetrating thoracic trauma” (opens in new tab), Journal of Thoracic Imaging, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 128-135, 2000.
- Kaiser ML, Whealon MD, Barrios C, Kong AP, Lekawa ME, Dolich MO, “The current role of magnetic resonance imaging for diagnosing cervical spine injury in blunt trauma patients with negative computed tomography scan”, American Surgeon, vol. 78, no. 10, pp. 1156-60, 2012.
- Admire AA, Dolich MO, Sisley AC, Samimi KJ, “Massive ventral hernias: role of tissue expansion in abdominal wall restoration following abdominal compartment syndrome” (opens in new tab), American Surgeon, vol. 68, no. 5, pp. 491-6, 2002.
- Grigorian A, Dolich M, Lekawa M, Fujitani R, Kabutey NK, Bashir R, Kuza C, Nahmias J, “Analysis of Blunt Cerebrovascular Injury in Pediatric Trauma” (opens in new tab), Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, vol. 87, no. 6, pp. 1354-1359, 2019.
Contact Information
Email: mdolich@uci.edu
Phone: (714) 456-5890
Address: Chapman Pavilion , Ste 6200
Return to topThis profile was created with the help of AI.
Last updated on 5/15/2026.