Mai-Britt Tolstrup

Mai-Britt Tolstrup serves as a Clinical Associate Professor at the Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, while simultaneously holding the position of Chief Surgeon at the Department of Surgery, Copenhagen University Hospital NOH since 2021. She maintains a dual appointment between the Capital Region of Denmark and the University of Copenhagen, reflecting her integrated clinical and academic career spanning over 20 years in emergency surgery.

Dr. Tolstrup's research interests center on intra- and postoperative surgical strategies, particularly focusing on emergency abdominal procedures. Her work extensively examines patient morbidity and mortality, risk prediction models, and both short- and long-term patient-reported outcomes following emergency surgeries. She has developed significant expertise in areas such as burst abdomen management, small bowel anastomosis techniques, sarcopenia assessment, and delirium prevention protocols in the surgical population.

Analysis of her recent publication record (2019-2025) reveals a consistent focus on improving outcomes in emergency abdominal surgery, with particular emphasis on preventing complications like burst abdomen, incisional hernias, and postoperative delirium. Her research demonstrates a methodological evolution from case-control and retrospective cohort studies toward interventional approaches and systematic reviews, indicating maturation of her research program toward evidence-based practice implementation.

As a clinical educator and researcher, Dr. Tolstrup has contributed significantly to the understanding of emergency surgical care pathways, with her work being cited extensively across international surgical literature. Her research has practical implications for surgical decision-making, particularly regarding bowel obstruction management, anastomosis techniques in emergency settings, and risk stratification for high-mortality patient populations such as those with liver cirrhosis.