Nitin N. Bhatia, M.D. Presentation Title: Spinal Surgery and Implants Dr. Bhatia graduated with honors from Stanford University, after which he attended Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. During medical school, Dr. Bhatia won numerous research and academic awards and was the valedictorian of his graduating class. Following his general surgical internship and orthopaedic surgery residency at the University of California, Los Angeles, Dr. Bhatia completed a spinal surgery fellowship at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital, after which he completed a second spinal surgery fellowship at Miami Children's Hospital. Dr. Bhatia specializes in the surgical and non-surgical treatment of spinal disorders. He has a special interest in problems affecting the cervical spine as well as spinal trauma. He also has significant experience with the thoracic and lumbar spine and with minimally invasive procedures. Dr. Bhatia also has been featured as a treating surgeon in the television show "Guardian Angels, MD" seen nationwide on The Learning Channel (TLC) as well as programs on PBS. He has expertise in all areas of spinal pathology including spinal stenosis, disc herniations, spine trauma, scoliosis, complex cervical and lumbar reconstruction, and failed back syndrome. Dr. Bhatia has previously published numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. Additionally, he has presented his research to national and international audiences and won multiple research awards. He currently serves as Chief of the Spinal Surgery Service, Residency Program Director and Assistant Professor of Clinical Orthopaedic Surgery in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of California, Irvine. In 2004, Dr. Bhatia co-founded the UC Irvine Multidisciplinary Spine Program which combines experts in multiple medical and surgical fields to provide unparalleled care for our patients.
		Mark A. Gomez, PH.D. Presentation Title: Determining the Failure Potential of Total Hip Arthroplasty in Frontal Motor Vehicle Impacts: An Interdisciplinary Approach Dr. Gomez is an expert who has been used nationwide in the field of injury biomechanics. He is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Orthopedics at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. He has been involved in the field of biomechanics since 1977 and has over twelve years of litigation and testimony experience. Dr. Gomez teaches biomechanics and is a published research scientist in orthopedics. He is the author of Biomechanics of Soft-Tissue Injury, published in 2001 by Lawyers and Judges. He has also co-authored chapters in numerous other textbooks, served as a reviewer for five journals, authored or co-authored some 25 original research articles and jointly published 60 abstracts. He participates in numerous conferences and maintains memberships in American Society of Biomechanics, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, The Orthopaedic Research Society, SAE International and Forensic Expert Witness Association
		Ranjan Gupta, M.D. Presentation Title: Shoulder Arthroplasty: Current State of Affairs and Future Directions Dr. Gupta received his undergraduate degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and his medical doctorate degree from Albany Medical College through the Accelerated Six Year Biomedical Program. He completed a general surgery internship, residency in Orthopaedic Surgery, and an NIH Post Doctoral Research Fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania. Subsequently, Dr. Gupta completed fellowship training in hand surgery/microsurgery at the University of California, Los Angeles, followed by an AO Fellowship in hand surgery/traumatology/shoulder at the University of Berne in Switzerland. He has been awarded the NIH Career Development Award from the National Institute for Neurologic Disorders and Stroke and the Marshall Urist Award from the Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons (2005). Dr. Ranjan Gupta also received the prestigious 2006 Kappa Delta Young Investigator Award from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgery and the Orthopaedic Research Society. Most recently, he was selected for the 2008 Sterling Bunnell Traveling Fellowship by the American Society for Surgery of the Hand (ASSH). This is the most prestigious award given by the ASSH. He currently serves as the Chair and Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of California, Irvine. Dr. Gupta is also a Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Anatomy & Neurobiology, and Biomedical Engineering.
		Thay Q. Lee, Ph.D. Dr. Lee is a Research Career Scientist at the VA Long Beach Healthcare System in Long Beach, California for the Department of Veterans Affairs. Dr. Lee is also a Professor at the University of California at Irvine. He is Vice Chairman for Research in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, College of Medicine and a Professor at the Department of Biomedical Engineering, Henry Samueli School of Engineering. Dr. Lee received his BS in Bioengineering and MS in Applied Mechanics at the University of California, San Diego. He received PhD in Biomaterials from Gothenburg University in Sweden. The main focus of Dr. Lee's research is identifying and developing biomechanical models to quantify injury mechanisms and surgical reconstruction methods. He has published over 100 full-length manuscripts, 300 abstracts and several books and book chapters. He gives invited lectures both nationally and internationally on shoulder and knee biomechanics. He was elected to Fellow for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), which is the highest distinction that is awarded by the society. He also was elected to a Fellow in the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), which recognizes individuals who made significant contribution to the field of Biomedical Engineering. In addition, he is an elected member of the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Orthopaedic Research Society, American Society of Biomechanics, California Orthopaedic Association, Society for Biomaterials, and Biomedical Engineering Society. Dr. Lee has a significant public service record. He serves as a member of the Board of Directors for Extremity War Trauma Research Foundation, California Orthopaedic Research Institute, Orthopaedic Research Laboratory Alumni Council and Asian American Institute for Research and Education. In addition, he serves on multiple committees for the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons. He serves as a grant review member for many national and international organizations including National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Veterans Affairs and many national and international organizations. He also serves as an Editor and reviews for high quality journals in his field of expertise.
		Orr Limpisvasti, MD Presentation Title: Arthroscopy and Ligament Reconstruction in the Knee Dr. Limpisvasti received his BS in Biological Sciences (Cum Laude) from University of California at Irvine and MD from University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry in New York. He completed his Orthopaedic Surgery Residency at University of Hawaii and a Sports Medicine Fellowship at Kerlan Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic in Los Angeles, California. Dr. Limpisvasti is Board Certified by American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine and Arthroscopy Association of North America. He is a Sports Medicine Orthopaedic Surgeon at Kerlan Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic in Los Angeles and he also serves as a Clinical Faculty at Orthopaedic Biomechanics Laboratory, VA Long Beach and University of California at Irvine. He is an Orthopaedic Consultant for Los Angeles Angels Baseball and Assistant Team Physician for Los Angeles Kings Hockey, Anaheim Ducks Hockey, Los Angeles Galaxy Soccer and Los Angeles Lakers Basketball.
		Charles D. Rosen, M.D. Presentation Title: Ethics in Orthopaedics Dr. Rosen received his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and his medical doctorate degree from the University of California, San Diego. He completed his general surgery internship at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, and his residency in Orthopaedic Surgery at the Hospital for Joint Diseases Orthopaedic Institute. He completed fellowship training in Spine Surgery and Rehabilitation at Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center. He currently serves as the Founding Director of UCI Spine Center and a Clinical Professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of California, Irvine. He is board certified, and re-certified, by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, an active member of the North American Spine Society, a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, President of the Association for Ethics in Spine Surgery.
		Marc R. Safran, MD Presentation Title: Hip Arthroscopy: The Next Frontier in Orthopaedic Surgery and its Challenges Dr. Safran is Professor and Associate Director of the Division of Sports Medicine in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Stanford University. He also serves as the director of the sport medicine fellowship program at Stanford. Dr. Safran earned his BA degree Magna Cum Laude from the University of California, Berkeley in 1983. While in medical school at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina he spent a year performing muscle - tendon biomechanical research. After receiving his medical degree in 1987 he moved back to California, and completed his general surgery internship and orthopaedic surgery residency at the University of California, Los Angeles in 1993. During his residency, he completed a one-year research fellowship in arthroplasty and joint stiffness funded through the NIH. In 1993, he spent a year at the University of Pittsburgh where he completed a Sports Medicine and Shoulder Surgery fellowship and completed studies within the area of proprioception research. Dr. Safran has authored or co-authored more than 75 scientific articles, 40 book chapters, and 3 books relating to orthopaedic surgery, focusing mainly on sports medicine. His research interests are in the areas of elbow ligament biomechanics, management of chondral injuries to the knee, tennis related epidemiology and outcome studies, hip biomechanics, as well as tibiofemoral and meniscal kinematics as studied with MRI in ligamentous instability. He is on the editorial board of the American Journal of Sports Medicine, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness, Current Sports Medicine Reports, and The Physician and Sports Medicine. Dr. Safran is a member of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (Program Committee, Subcommittee on Shoulder and Instructional Course Local Committee), the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine (Traveling Fellowship Committee, Research Committee), International Society of Arthroscopy, Knee Surgery and Orthopaedic Sports Medicine (Board of Directors, Member-At-Large), Western Orthopaedic Association (Past President; Board of Directors) and American College of Sports Medicine (Co-Chairman, Team Physicians Conference). He also is the President of the Society for Tennis Medicine and Science (Board of Directors, President), and an elected member of the Herodicus Society, ACL Study Group, Magellan Society, American Society for Shoulder and Elbow Surgery, and American Orthopaedic Association. Dr. Safran has received numerous awards, including the AOSSM - ESSKA Traveling Fellowship and the Sanex WTA (women's tennis association) Irving Click Physician of the Year Award.
		Theodore Schlegel, MD Presentation Title: A New Knotless Suture Staple Double Row Construct for Medial Repair of Rotator Cuff Tears Dr. Theodore Schlegel, a founding member of the Steadman Hawkins Clinic Denver, specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of knee and shoulder injuries. He has extensive clinical and research experience in both of these areas. He is a team physician for the Denver Broncos and Colorado Rockies, as well as a consultant for the US Ski Team. After graduating from Brown University where he was an All American water polo player, he received his medical degree at the University of Cincinnati. He then completed his residency training in orthopedic surgery at the University of Utah, followed by a sports medicine fellowship at the Steadman Hawkins Clinic in Vail, Colorado. Dr. Schlegel is a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Orthopedics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine where he participates in the education of residents and sports medicine fellows. He is board certified in orthopedic surgery and is a member of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine and American Shoulder and Elbow Society. He serves as a consulting reviewer for both the American Journal of Sports Medicine and the American Shoulder and Elbow Journal. Dr. Schlegel continues to participate in both basic and clinical research related to both the knee and shoulder. He has presented his work both nationally and internationally, which has resulted in numerous published journal articles and book chapters. Recently his research endeavors, in collaboration with Colorado State University Hospital, has lead to biomedical innovations that simplify arthroscopic shoulder surgical techniques. Working with Opus Medical, he has helped develop new FDA approved technology which will enable surgeons to perform rotator cuff repairs without open surgery.
		Erik van der Burg: CEO, Ross Creek Medical Medical, Inc. Presentation Title: Soft Tissue Fixation and Implant Development Erik is co-founder and CEO of Ross Creek Medical. Ross Creek is developing novel soft tissue fixation technologies that are designed to improve the strength and simplicity of the reattachment of soft tissue to bone. Prior to Ross Creek, he was co-founder and CEO of Aspire Medical, which is focused on developing novel surgical therapies for obstructive sleep apnea. Prior to Aspire, Erik was an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Three Arch Partners, where he co-founded and incubated Aspire. Previously, Erik was co-founder and Vice President of Research and Development for Appriva Medical, where he led the development of a novel device and procedure for preventing stroke associated with atrial fibrillation. Appriva was acquired by ev3, Inc. in 2002. Erik also served as Director of R&D at Prograft Medical (WL Gore and Assoc.) and held engineering management positions at MicroFlow Analytical and Advanced Cardiovascular Systems (now part of Abbott Vascular). Erik holds a B.S.M.E. from Cal Poly University, San Luis Obispo, and an M.S.M.E. from Santa Clara University.