Scientific research plays a huge role in the care we provide to patients. It’s extremely important to me to stay at the forefront of best practices in shoulder research. Unfortunately, most orthopedic surgeons do not have the capacity to stay involved in research or the ongoing study of their patient outcomes. But at the Cleveland Shoulder Institute, I am extremely fortunate to have a research department in place to study patient outcomes and develop best practice protocols based on the most recent data findings. We regularly contribute our studies to academic journals and present our findings around the world.
Being an independent practice has allowed us to study exactly what we think is best not only for our patients, but for the orthopedic, healthcare and surgical fields in general. The work I do in collaboration with Yousef Shishani, MD, Research Fellow and Stacey Jones, Research Assistant, has led to continuous improvement of our patient outcomes.
Before the patient’s appointment is even scheduled, our team of medical doctors, researchers, physician and medical assistants are working closely together to provide the optimal patient experience. Research and medicine work hand in hand at the Cleveland Shoulder Institute, and it is having an impact not only on our patients, but for those who study our findings as well.
I have always considered myself a scientist as well as a medical doctor, and throughout my career I have been honored to work with world renowned physicians and researchers. During my residency and fellowship years I had the unique opportunity to study with pioneers in the field from in the US and Europe including Gilles Walch, Laurent Lafosse and JP Warner.
Tracking Patient Outcomes
Since the Institute was founded, each patient’s recovery has been tracked and followed to better understand what elements of a treatment served to improve patient outcomes. Some patients have been studied as long as 15 years. We interview our patients to intimately study the efficacy of our procedures and employ what we learn for the patient benefit. This gives us a unique opportunity to ask the right questions that ultimately lead to improvements in patient care, as well as provide ongoing follow up care.
Our internationally-respected research team is continuously active in bringing new, investigative topics in general shoulder research, surgical implant design and treatment modalities to the table. And, we are proud to say, many of our shoulder practice fellows have gone on to have successful practices of their own.
In 2015, our team received the most prestigious international research award in shoulder surgery, the Charles S. Neer Award from the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons, the most prestigious subspecialty group in orthopedic surgery comprised of the top shoulder surgeons from around the world. The research team received the award for completing a study demonstrating that tranexamic acid, a drug applied topically during surgery, can be used during shoulder replacements to significantly reduce blood loss from this procedure in a double-blind prospective randomized trial.
This study helped our Institute change how we care for patients in the operating room, demonstrating that tranexamic acid can be used successfully to decrease post-operative complications. The insight gained from this research supported the shoulder community’s march toward less invasive methods for performing shoulder replacements.
For more than a decade, our practice has been focused on the development and ongoing improvement of minimally invasive shoulder replacements. Our work has helped develop a novel technique for minimally invasive rotator cuff repair, sparing the patient from total shoulder replacement. We also developed the technique for the first all arthroscopic shoulder replacement using cartilage grafts.
The improvements and innovations our team has developed have enabled me to become one of the largest volume total shoulder replacement surgeons in the country, and the highest volume outpatient shoulder surgeons in the United States.
Our published research can be found here.
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The Cleveland Shoulder Institute treats patients with all types of shoulder and elbow disorders resulting from traumatic injuries, arthritis, instabilities, rotator cuff and sports-related injuries. Led by internationally recognized Orthopedic Surgeon Reuben Gobezie, MD, the institute provides both surgical and non-operative treatments.
Dr. Gobezie is founder/director of The Cleveland Shoulder Institute and Regen Orthopedics. For more information, visit clevelandshoulder.com or regenorthopedics.com.
