Stanford Medicine orthopaedic surgeon Constance Chu, MD, is leading a clinical trial testing the effectiveness of early treatments for patients with an ACL injury. Dr. Chu believes treating ACL injuries immediately will help prevent or slow the onset of arthritis.

Almost half of all patients with ACL injuries develop post-traumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA). Using a new MRI color mapping technique, doctors can now identify pre-osteoarthritis. Dr. Chu hopes to treat these patients and prevent PTOA from occurring.

Orthopaedic surgeon Michael Gardner, MD, is using new technology to identify shoulder deformity associated with displaced diaphyseal clavicle fracture (DCF). White-light 3D body scanning offers a detailed view of both the injured and uninjured shoulders to discern deformity.

Used in conjunction with radiographic imaging, 3D scanning provides important data that may inform treatment decisions. This technology may also be used to monitor shoulder deformity in both operative and nonoperative patients.

Stanford Medicine spinal surgeon Todd Alamin, MD, performs spinal decompression under conscious sedation with local anesthetic. Avoiding general anesthesia (GA) and spinal anesthesia (SA) makes decompression surgery possible for higher-risk and older patients.

Select patients and those over the age of 65 are at higher risk for hypotension and postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) associated with GA and SA. Yet this subset of patients often suffers from severe spinal stenosis. Dr. Alamin’s technique allows surgical decompression in the safest way possible for those patients.