Specialized for 160 years, HSS is ranked No. 1 in the world for orthopedics.  “As the world’s greatest concentration of expertise in musculoskeletal health, we recognize our special responsibility and opportunity to ensure the highest quality talent, knowledge, patient care and outcomes at all our locations,” said Douglas E. Padgett, MD, HSS Surgeon-in-Chief and Medical Director.

“Dr. Altchek was a visionary in bringing HSS to Florida, where the high quality of life creates especially high appreciation and demand for better quality musculoskeletal care,” said Tara McCoy, chief executive officer at HSS Florida. “Drs. Sama and Simovitch are proven collaborative leaders who will continue to grow our strength, presence and impact in the West Palm Beach community and beyond." 

HSS Florida offers surgical and non-surgical expertise for conditions including joint pain, trauma and sports injuries, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, back pain, and conditions of the hand, upper extremities, foot and ankle for both pediatric and adult patients — including professional and youth athletes. Since its opening in 2020, it has broadened the delivery of musculoskeletal care to include injury prevention guidance to youth sports teams, performance services in collaboration with TB12, and workforce wellness support for employers throughout the state.  

“HSS Florida has been incredibly busy providing the highest-quality musculoskeletal care to the West Palm Beach community for more than three years,” said Dr. Altchek. “I am grateful to have been part of bringing this care vision to life and now, with the appointments of Drs. Sama and Simovitch, this will allow us to continue to advance clinical excellence and outcomes for our patients.” 

For more information on HSS Florida or to schedule an appointment, visit HSS.edu/Florida or call 561-657-4600. 

Actress, producer, author, and talk show host Drew Barrymore hosted the gala, and guests were treated to a musical performance by seven-time Grammy Award-winner Gladys Knight. Legendary Baseball Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera presented the award to Dr. Altchek.  

“We are privileged to honor Dr. Altchek for his outstanding contributions to HSS and to the field of sports medicine. He played a key role in the expansion of the Sports Medicine Institute to the West Side of Manhattan and in the opening of HSS Florida in West Palm Beach,” said Bryan T. Kelly, MD, surgeon-in-chief at HSS. “His name is synonymous with the finest sports medicine care in the nation for athletes at all levels, including elite professionals. His pioneering surgical techniques have raised the bar for patients at HSS and beyond.”

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation has been an extraordinary partner to HSS under the leadership of Andreas Dracopoulos for nearly two decades. “We commend and honor Andreas for his outstanding leadership and generous philanthropy,” said Louis A. Shapiro, president and CEO of HSS. “By establishing the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Complex Joint Reconstruction Center at HSS, the SNF continues to have a profound impact on our work to advance research and treatment for the most challenging orthopedic conditions worldwide.”  

The Tribute Dinner raised $5.9 million in funds to support the HSS mission to provide the highest quality care to help people get back to what they need and love to do. Guests included leaders and luminaries in business, health care, sports, philanthropy, finance, the arts and government.

David W. Altchek, MD

Dr. David Altchek, a sports medicine surgeon, is co-chief emeritus of the Sports Medicine and Shoulder Service at HSS. In addition to treating everyday athletes, he has played an important role in promoting the health and well-being of several professional sports teams and associations. He serves as medical director for the New York Mets and is a medical consultant for the National Basketball Association. He previously served as North American medical director for the Association of Tennis Professionals, which sponsors the men’s professional tennis tour. He is a former team physician for the U.S. Davis Cup tennis team.

Dr. Altchek is a professor of surgery in clinical orthopedics at Weill Cornell Medical College. He has written more than 100 articles and book chapters on conditions affecting the shoulder, elbow and knee.

He knew he wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon early on. At the tender age of 10, he went on Saturday morning rounds with his father, an orthopedic surgeon. When it was time for college, he attended Columbia University, where he would later receive the John Jay Award for Distinguished Professional Achievement, the highest honor bestowed on Columbia alumni.

He earned his medical degree from Cornell University Medical College, which awarded him the T. Campbell Thompson Prize for Excellence in Orthopedic Surgery. Dr. Altchek completed his residency at Hospital for Special Surgery, followed by a fellowship in Sports Medicine and Shoulder Surgery at HSS.  

In 2003, the Association of American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons recognized Dr. Altchek with the Charles S. Neer Award, which honors outstanding clinical and basic science investigations contributing to the understanding, care or prevention of shoulder injuries.

Andreas C. Dracopoulos

Andreas C. Dracopoulos is Co-President of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), a private, international philanthropic organization that has made more than 5,100 grants to fund nonprofit organizations and projects worldwide aiming to achieve a broad, lasting, and positive impact for society.

Andreas is a Trustee of The Rockefeller University, Johns Hopkins University (JHU), and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He is also an Honorary Trustee of the New York Public Library (NYPL).

He has provided long-standing personal support to many projects in the areas of education, arts and culture, and medicine. He provided the founding grant to establish the Dracopoulos iDeas Lab at CSIS and supported the creation of the Dracopoulos-Bloomberg Bioethics iDeas Lab at JHU’s Berman Institute of Bioethics, where he also endowed the directorship.

In 2021, Andreas was invested as Archon Grand Orator (Megas Rhetor) by Archbishop of Constantinople and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I and made an Honorary Battalion Chief by the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), the organization’s highest civilian honor. The Republic of France awarded Andreas the rank of the Officer of the Legion of Honor in 2016, while H.E. the President of the Hellenic Republic awarded Andreas the ranks of the Grand Cross of the Order of Honor and the Grand Commander of the Order of the Phoenix in 2018 and 2012, respectively. He has also been recognized by the New York Stem Cell Foundation, the FDNY Foundation, the Child Mind Institute, the Hellenic American Chamber of Commerce, and the National Herald.

Andreas was born and raised in Athens, Greece, and graduated from Athens College. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in economics from the Wharton School of Business. In June 2021, Andreas received an honorary degree, Doctor of Laws, from Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada. He lives in New York City.

January 2021 marks the one-year anniversary of HSS Florida, a state-of-the-art facility in West Palm Beach that is part of Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), the world’s leading academic medical center specializing in orthopedics, rheumatology and related disciplines. HSS is ranked #1 in the world for Orthopedics by Newsweek and has been ranked #1 in the United States for orthopedics for 11 consecutive years by U.S. News & World Report.

HSS Florida offers surgical and non-surgical expertise for conditions including joint pain, trauma and sports injuries, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, back pain, and conditions of the hand, upper extremities, foot and ankle for both pediatric and adult patients — including professional and youth athletes.

“HSS Florida is a showcase example of new ways we are making the highest quality of care more accessible to people seeking better quality of life through better quality of movement,” said Louis A. Shapiro, president and CEO of HSS. “For many years Florida residents have travelled to New York for HSS care, but the enthusiastic reception in our Florida location is even greater than we anticipated.”

In addition to comprehensive clinical orthopedic care, advanced diagnostic and on-site imaging services, physical therapy, and performance testing, HSS Florida launched an outpatient total joint replacement program in June, as many Americans remained concerned about COVID-19 exposure. This surgical service provides highly personalized, comprehensive treatment without the need to spend time in a hospital, often allowing patients to return home just hours after surgery.

HSS Florida also expanded its roster of top medical talent with the addition of Martin W. Roche, MD, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and pioneer of complex knee reconstruction. Dr. Roche joined HSS Florida earlier this month and will lead the hip and knee joint replacement program as Director of Hip and Knee Arthroplasty.

“HSS Florida is a world-class center of excellence, emulating HSS in every way—from its highly skilled physicians, advanced equipment and remarkable techniques to the truly personalized patient experience,” said David W. Altchek, MD, founding medical director of HSS Florida. “We look forward to continuing to serve the increasingly active community in Florida, advancing their musculoskeletal health and helping them move better and live better.”

HSS Enterprise Chief Operating Officer and Chief Strategy Officer Justin Oppenheimer noted that HSS Florida is one part of a growing national ecosystem. “We are expanding our physical and digital reach to increase HSS impact across the country.”

HSS Florida Main Campus is located at 300 Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard in West Palm Beach. For more information on HSS Florida or to schedule an appointment, visit HSS.edu/Florida or call 561-657-4600.

HSS has ranked No. 1 in the nation for orthopedics for the past 10 consecutive years, according to U.S. News & World Report. The world’s largest academic medical center specialized in orthopedics, rheumatology and related specialties, HSS attracts patients from all 50 States and more than 80 countries. Athletes from more than 80 of the highest performing teams in the world travel to HSS for care. In 2019, nearly 3,000 Florida residents travelled for care to the HSS main campus in New York.

“HSS is committed to the health, wellness and lifestyle of our patients,” said Dr. Bryan Kelly, surgeon-in-chief and medical director, HSS. “We are always advancing innovative pathways to provide better care and an important part of that process is providing access to more people in new locations.”

HSS Florida is led by Founding Medical Director David Altchek, MD, renowned sports medicine surgeon, chief emeritus of the HSS Sports Medicine Institute and Medical Director for the New York Mets. Nick Sama, MD, orthopedic trauma surgeon, will serve as Associate Medical Director for Inpatient Services; and Ryan Simovitch, MD, sports medicine and shoulder surgeon, will serve as Associate Medical Director for Ambulatory Services.

Located at 300 Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard, HSS Florida - West Palm Beach offers comprehensive outpatient orthopedic care, including physician consultations, advanced diagnostic and imaging services, specialized rehabilitation, sports performance programs and surgery.

“Southeast Florida is the ideal location for HSS to extend its reach and impact,” said Dr. Altchek. “This new facility will serve as a real center of excellence for patients seeking a wide-range of musculoskeletal health services. I’m looking forward to working with some of the world’s most highly skilled physicians, surgeons and other specialists at the spectacular HSS Florida campus.”

Physicians practicing at HSS Florida include those based in Florida full-time as well as those who split their time between the New York and Florida campuses of HSS. In addition to Drs. Altchek, Sama, and Simovitch, other HSS physicians who will be seeing patients this month include:

• Michelle Carlson, MD, hand and upper extremity surgeon
• James “Beamer” Carr II, MD, sports medicine surgeon
• Kathleen Davenport, MD, physiatrist
• John Wang, MD, hip and knee surgeon

“HSS is making the highest level of musculoskeletal care more convenient for a community that understands and values quality,” said Louis A. Shapiro, president and CEO of HSS. “This new facility is unlike any of our previous expansions as this is a brand-new comprehensive center built from the ground up and located outside of the New York City tri-state area.”

Physical therapists and rehabilitation specialists will help patients with injuries and pain in the hand, wrist, elbow, low back and neck as well as sports injuries and general orthopedic pain. HSS Florida will also offer sports performance services, including running analysis. Depending on insurance, the need for a physician prescription may be waived.

Reconstruction is the current standard of care surgical treatment for tears of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). This procedure typically uses a graft, or a piece of tissue, placed in the knee minimally invasively, using small incisions. About 300,000 ACL reconstructions are performed annually in the United States with well documented rates of success.

ACL repair is an older technique that involved suturing (sewing) torn ACL tissue, not rebuilding it with a graft. ACL repair was performed in the 1970s at select institutions, including Hospital for Special Surgery, but was abandoned due to unacceptably high failure rates of up to 50%.

Today, ACL repair has been modernized and can be performed through a minimally invasive approach. Proponents suggest that modern ACL repair techniques may be performed safely and may lead to a quicker recovery than ACL reconstruction. However, the limited studies to date raise questions that must be discussed in detail with your surgeon.

1. It is critically important to get ACL surgery right the first time.

When ACL surgery fails, surgeons must do a revision procedure to correct or revise the problems that were not fully addressed the first time. Revision requires reconstructive ACL surgery with a graft. (ACL repairs cannot be done as revisions.) Redoing ACL surgery may result in higher rates of failure, lower rates of return to sports, and increased risk of osteoarthritis.

The importance of successful initial ACL surgery holds true for people of all ages, but it is particularly critical for young athletes, for whom a failed surgery can have devastating consequences, including years lost from sport in the short term as well as chronic pain and loss of function in the long term.

2. Failure rates for ACL repair appear to be significantly higher than those for ACL reconstruction in people of all ages.

Current studies suggest that modern ACL repair techniques have a failure rate that may be five to ten times higher than that of ACL reconstruction^1,2,3. One major recent study in a prominent sports medicine journal found that arthroscopic ACL repair has unacceptable outcomes in young athletes, with short-term failure rates of close to 50%².

It has been suggested that ACL repair may be appropriate for older adults who have a type of ACL tear called a proximal avulsion and who do not participate in “cutting and pivoting” sports such as basketball, volleyball, and soccer. For these patients, failure rates in the short term appear to be much higher than ACL reconstruction in this age group^1,2,3.

3. There is still much we don’t know about ACL repair.

There has been no scientific evidence that shows a difference in postoperative pain between ACL repair and reconstruction. Rehabilitation and return-to-play protocols for ACL repair have not yet been established. Proper guidelines for rehabilitation and return to sports are essential to keep people safe from re-injury.
 

Andrew D. Pearle, MD

Chief, HSS Sports Medicine Institute

Bryan T. Kelly, MD

HSS Surgeon-in-Chief and Medical Director

Answorth A. Allen, MD

David W. Altchek, MD

Struan H. Coleman, MD, PhD

Frank A. Cordasco, MD, MS

David M. Dines, MD

Joshua S. Dines, MD

Stephen Fealy, MD

Andreas H. Gomoll, MD

Lawrence V. Gulotta, MD

Jo A. Hannafin, MD, PhD

Anne M. Kelly, MD

John D. MacGillivray, MD

Robert G. Marx, MD, MSc, FRCSC

Michael J. Maynard, MD

Moira M. McCarthy, MD

Danyal H. Nawabi, MD, FRCS

Stephen J. O’Brien, MD, MBA

Anil S. Ranawat, MD

Scott A. Rodeo, MD

Howard Anthony Rose, MD

Beth E. Shubin Stein, MD

Sabrina M. Strickland, MD

Karen M. Sutton, MD

Samuel A. Taylor, MD

Russell F. Warren, MD

Thomas L. Wickiewicz, MD

Riley J. Williams III, MD

References

1. Jonkergouw A, van der List J, DiFelice G. Arthroscopic primary repair of proximal ACL tears: outcomes of the first 56 consecutive patients and the role of additional internal bracing. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2019 Jan;27(1):21-28.

2. Gagliardi AG, Carry PM, Parikh HB, Traver JL, Howell DR, Albright JC. ACL repair with suture ligament augmentation is associated with a high failure rate among adolescent patients. Am J Sports Med. 2019 Mar;47(3):560-566.

3. Wright RW et al. Risk of tearing the intact ACL in the contralateral knee and rupturing the ACL graft during the first 2 years after ACLR: A prospective MOON cohort study. Am J Sports Med. 2007 Jul;35(7):1131-4.

For more information visit https://www.hss.edu/condition-list_torn-acl.asp.

Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) has been nationally ranked No. 1 for orthopedics by U.S. News & World Report for the past ten consecutive years. The acclaimed HSS Sports Medicine Institute integrates non-operative physicians, physical therapists, athletic trainers, clinical research staff, nurses and surgeons to provide evidence-based clinical care. Last year, HSS treated professional athletes from more than 80 teams worldwide.

The new facility will add to the HSS Sports Medicine Institute geographic footprint that includes the HSS main campus on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, and facilities in Paramus, NJ, Stamford, CT, Westchester, NY, and Long Island, NY, as well as future locations at Hudson Yards, in Brooklyn and in West Palm Beach, Florida. Located at 600-610 West 58^th Street in Manhattan, the 66,000 square foot facility will feature physician offices, exam rooms, diagnostic imaging, outpatient operating rooms, physical therapy, sports performance and a rehabilitation center.

“We are adding this new location to continue to advance the care for active, health-conscious individuals by providing best-in-class musculoskeletal care,” said Louis A. Shapiro, president and CEO at HSS. “This opening signifies a new point of growth for not only HSS overall but also for the HSS Sports Medicine Institute as we continue to reach our patients in new places and in innovative ways.”

The sports rehabilitation and performance center will feature robust performance testing including motion capture, a golf simulator, force plates, multipurpose sports turf, and sports nutrition consultations. There will also be an equipment zone including cardio, strength training and aerobic machines, as well as hydro-therapy and recovery rooms.

This new location for HSS and its Sports Medicine Institute “will expand our ability to treat local and travelling patients in New York City, and help continue to set new standards for sports medicine care,” said Shapiro.

“Athletes and active people pose unique challenges, and our team of outstanding physicians work intimately with top physiotherapists, performance trainers, nurses, and nutritionists to provide seamless diagnosis and treatment,” said David W. Altchek, MD, sports medicine surgeon at HSS. “From initial diagnosis through every step in their treatment and recovery, the same level of attention will be given to all levels of athletes.”

HSS sports medicine surgeons who serve in an official medical capacity for the Brooklyn Nets, New York Knicks, the New York Mets, the New York Red Bulls, USA Basketball, and other athletic organizations, will care for patients at the new facility.

In conjunction with this partnership, HSS will provide its expertise in connection with operation of the Mets Academy, including high quality preventative, educational, performance, and consulting services, for the benefit of the club’s Latin American prospects. Additionally, HSS will look to host educational workshops to medical professionals in the Dominican Republic as well as community and charitable events at the facility.

As the Mets Academy’s Presenting Partner, HSS will also receive branding within the training facility, which will be on display during the ribbon cutting ceremony on Monday, April 22 at 11:30am.

“HSS has been a tremendous partner and supporter of all our health and performance programs for years and in addition to keeping our players healthy, they will join us in all our Dominican Academy community initiatives we participate in,” said Mets COO Jeff Wilpon. “Our Academy is such an important part of our organization that it only makes sense for HSS to provide the same advantages to all our athletes in the Dominican Republic.”

“HSS has a long specialized history in working with high-performing athletes with our clinical expertise and sports medicine research, said David W. Altchek, MD, sports medicine surgeon at HSS and medical director of the Mets. “We have been providing day-to-day coverage for the Mets for more than 25 years, as well as assisting in the decision-making for each player’s course of care throughout the seasons, and now look forward to enabling baseball prospects in this region to maintain long and healthy careers.”

Built in 2008, the Mets Academy is dedicated to developing Latin American baseball prospects; both on and off the field. The training facility is home to 3 full baseball fields, a professional-grade clubhouse, along with full-serve practice facility including batting cages, pitching mounds, sand track and swimming pool. Through different educational programs, the Mets not only support players to further refine their baseball techniques, but also provide them with workshops to learn English and opportunities to participate in community initiatives.

HSS Sports Medicine Institute boasts a team of physicians dedicated to treating athletic injuries of the musculoskeletal system that fields more than 95,000 patient visits each year and perform more than 10,000 surgeries. HSS physicians serve as team physicians and athletic trainers for more than 30 professional and college teams and organizations.

Read the full article at nj.com.

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The goals of the study, which is now enrolling patients, is to find biomarkers correlated with the development of osteoarthritis of the joint after surgery to fix traumatic tears of the meniscus. This horseshoe-shaped layer of cartilage cushions the bones of the knee during weight-bearing activities like running and jumping.

More than one million Americans annually undergo meniscal surgery, making it among the most common orthopedic procedures performed in the United States. The injuries generally occur in young athletes who experience violent trauma to the knee, although older people can suffer them without such trauma, as well. However, patients who undergo the procedure often develop osteoarthritis of the joint—a painful, degenerative condition that to date has no cure or particularly effective treatment.

"The bottom line is, this is a very common orthopedic surgery and the results are not very good," said David W. Altchek, MD, sports medicine surgeon and co-chief emeritus of HSS Sports Medicine, and medical director for the New York Mets. "It seems like the surgery makes a small number of people better, some have an indifferent response and, unfortunately, a significant number of people get worse."

"We don’t really know much about the biology of how the meniscus heals. We kind of let pain be the guide," added Christopher Mendias, PhD, ATC, associate scientist at HSS, who is helping conduct the study. "We want to be able to say, 'Is it healing well, and is there a correlation between doing poorly clinically and elevated levels of pro-inflammatory biomarkers or that we can detect with advanced imaging?'"

The HSS study will have several components. Drs. Altchek, Mendias and their colleagues will take samples of synovial fluid--a viscous substance that lubricates joints--from 28 patients (14 men and 14 women) aged 18 to 45 undergoing a procedure called partial meniscectomy in which surgeons shave away frayed pieces of the cartilage. Those samples will be screened for the presence of proteins associated with inflammation, molecules such as interleukin 1 beta, which is known to play a role in osteoarthritis, as well as other previously unidentified substances.

The researchers also will use an advanced form of magnetic resonance imaging to track meniscal healing over time, and will match that information with the biomarker activity to look for patterns of protein activity that predict either successful healing or poor outcomes.  

"This whole idea of precision medicine is just kind of catching on in orthopedics now," Dr. Mendias said. Ideally, a biomarker panel could help surgeons determine which patients will be most likely to benefit from particular meniscal procedures, and what kind of rehabilitation--and even prehabilitation--routine they should undergo. "It could also help us identify therapies to block those inflammatory molecules and reduce the risks of osteoarthritis later in life," he said.

"The hypothesis is that there is a degenerative effect afterward, as a result of the injury or the surgery, or both—and that biologic therapy might slow that down," Dr. Altchek said. He added that there is "a tremendous amount of excitement" in the field of orthopedics about new biologic therapies, including platelet rich plasma and stem cells, that are now being used to treat tendon injuries and certain other ailments. Whether they might work to treat or even prevent the development of osteoarthritis after knee surgery is unclear. "This project is an important step in the direction" of answering that question, he said.

Scott A. Rodeo, MD, sports medicine surgeon, co-chief emeritus of HSS Sports Medicine, and co-director of the Tissue Engineering, Regeneration, and Repair Program, will be contributing patients to the study.

"A common clinical observation is that there is tremendous variability in the rate and risk of progressive degenerative changes in patients undergoing surgery for meniscus injury," said Dr. Rodeo, who also is head team physician for the New York Giants. "Some patients will do well for decades with no further problems, while there is a subset of patients who develop relatively rapid progression of degenerative changes. In addition to biomechanical factors, it is likely that the ‘biologic milieu’ in the joint is a major factor accounting for these discrepant outcomes. In this study we will characterize inflammatory mediators, matrix degrading enzymes, and a host of other cytokines that likely play an important role in joint homeostasis. Such information will not only help us gain a better understanding of the underlying mechanism of joint degeneration in patients with meniscus injury, but, importantly, may suggest therapeutic targets to allow development of innovative treatments."

Other HSS physicians involved include HSS sports medicine surgeons Answorth A. Allen, MD, New York Knicks team physician; and Riley J. Williams III, MD, medical director of the Brooklyn Nets.

If you have a meniscus tear and are interested in the study, or would like to serve as a healthy control subject, please contact Daniel Edon (edond@hss.edu).

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HSS sports medicine surgeon David W. Altchek, MD, commented on the study's findings. He pointed out that there are two kinds of meniscus tears, and only the much less common type responds well to surgery.

Dr. Altchek noted that the issue with seniors is that their meniscal injuries are more often the result of wear and tear, and they often or even usually coincide with osteoarthritis.

"That is what reduces the quality of the outcome. It's usually the arthritis causing most of the symptoms," he said.

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