Tommy John Surgery

We have just performed another successful ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction of the elbow (Tommy John surgery). We are the team physicians for Cal-State Northridge (CSUN) and operate on all their scholarship athletes. We perform the second most Tommy John surgeries in Los Angeles and our results are outstanding! All injured athletes and weekend warriors should be treated at The Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute and you will get the same excellent care that the elite athletes of CSUN receive.

Keep moving!
Dr. Sisto

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I am proud and excited to share with you a number of new events at the Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute.

Three months ago we added a new associate, Dr. Shrey Kanjiya, to our group. Dr. Kanjiya completed his orthopaedic residency at Stony Brook, New York and completed a one year Sports Medicine Fellowship at the Kerlan-Jobe Clinic working with the Clippers, Dodgers and Rams!

Dr. Kanjiya specializes in treatment of complex fractures and injuries of the shoulder, elbow, knee and ankle. We are fortunate to have such an outstanding surgeon as part of our group.

I, Dr. Sisto, have been selected again as a Top Doctor by Los Angeles Magazine for 2022. I respect this award as I am selected by my own orthopaedic peers in Los Angeles as we vote for the best orthopaedic doctors in Southern California. I am grateful for this recognition and strive to continue to deliver the most compassionate care I can provide.

Finally, we will be introducing the Shoulder Center at the Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute which I have concentrated on and am now ready to introduce in 2022. I have combined the expertise of the shoulder specialist in our group with the top physical therapists in Southern California to deliver the combined ultimate care for disorders of the shoulder. Each of the physical therapy groups in Southern California have been carefully selected to implement our non-operative and post-operative protocols to deliver the most up to date and comprehensive treatment of the shoulder. Each one of our patients will have their own personal therapist working directly with the surgeon to maximize care.

Please watch for the upcoming announcements and our videos as we introduce the Shoulder Center at the Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute in the months ahead.

Stay well, Happy New Year and Keep Moving!!

Dr. Sisto

Minimally Invasive Partial Knee Replacement Rules

I just returned from our annual American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons meeting and heard outstanding news!! Researchers have agreed that a partial knee replacement (arthroplasty) is more successful than a total knee replacement. The pain relief is similar but the complications and recovery are much less!!
I have been one of the first surgeons to perform partial knee replacements in Los Angeles and I have reported similar results in many publications over the years.
I strongly believe that a partial is best!!
Please call us at the Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute and learn if this minimally invasive procedure is right for you.

Keep Moving!!

Dr. Sisto

Injections to Avoid Total Knee Arthroplasty

Degenerate arthritis of the knee is a painful, disabling condition. The surfaces of our knee bones (femoral tibia) are lined by smooth, glistening articular cartilage which allows the bones to painlessly glide  on each other. The cartilage or pad of the knee wears down as we age and the bones grind on one  another which causes pain and stiffness. The best analogy is that of a car tire losing its tread and the rim of the tire grinds on the road (ouch!!!).

The surgical solution for degenerative arthritis is a Total Knee Arthroplasty (Replacement) which has been a spectacular procedure to allow pain free motion. The knee surgeons at The Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute are aggressive in this procedure and we have helped thousands of patients to regain mobility.

The surgery, however, is still a big step for most patients and we are constantly searching for non-operative solutions to avoid surgery but yet allow our patients to function without pain.

The newest non-surgical treatment which has been successful is PRP injections of the knee. PRP is platelet rich plasma which entails drawing the patients own blood and concentrating the growth factors and injecting the concentrate into the knee joint of the patient. The procedure is done in the office and is a minimal discomfort. PRP has shown an ability to grow cartilage, recruit stem cells and has anti-inflammatory activities to reduce pain and slow down the arthritis cycle.

The surgeons at The Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute are specialists in PRP injections and we are excited to share the new technology with our patients in hopes of avoiding a total knee arthroplasty.

Please call our office and schedule an appointment to see if you are a good candidate for PRP injections.

Keep Moving!!!

Dr. Domenick Sisto

Super Doctor

I am pleased to announce that I have been selected by The Los Angeles Magazine to be recognized as a “Super Doctor” in Southern California. This is an important honor as only a select few are chosen and the selection committee is composed of other orthopaedic surgeons in Southern California. My peers have selected me as a “Super Doctor” for the past ten years and I am grateful and humbled by this distinction.
I am the founding member of The Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute which is one of the largest private practice groups in Southern California. All of our doctors are board certified, fellowship trained specialists who deliver the highest level of up to date, innovative care. We also have 3 Physician Assistants who extend the care we deliver and compliment the six orthopaedic surgeons in our group.
We are excited by the “Super Doctor” recognition and all the doctors at The Los Angeles Othopaedic Institute look forward to helping our patients stay healthy and pain free.
Keep moving!!

Dr. Domenick Sisto

Stem Cells are Ready for Prime Time

Stem cells are pluripotential cells which means that they are immature cells which can differentiate in the body to form many different types of cells depending on which part of the body they are introduced or injected into. Stem cell therapy is gathering so much publicity now and there are a number of reasons to justify the excitement.  The primary reason is that we are finally getting peer-reviewed, high level publications from research teams that prove stem cell is working.

The primary indications for stem cell therapy in the musculoskeletal system are for degenerative arthritis and chronic soft tissue injury. A number of research articles have been recently published which clearly show that stem cell therapy will alleviate pain and slow down the progression of arthritis in the knee and shoulder.

At the Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute we are enrolling patients now in our own studies to quantitate the benefits of stem cell therapy to treat our patients with degenerative arthritis. Our early results are encouraging, and we are currently recommending stem cell therapy to our patients prior to undergoing total knee, hip or shoulder arthroplasty.

Please call us if you have been recommended to undergo a joint replacement surgery and see if stem cell therapy is a good option for you.

Keep Moving!

Dr. Sisto

 

 

Biologics is the New Buzz Word

Biologics is the new term for the treatment of musculoskeletal injuries utilizing PRP injections or stem cell injections. PRP is “platelet rich plasma” which allows us to draw blood from a patient, spin it down to concentrate the growth factors and inject those factors into an injured knee/shoulder/ankle or elbow joint.
Stem cells are pluripotent cells which means that these are immature cells which can develop into another type of cell if they are introduced into that new cells environment. Stem cells are either harvested from a patient’s bone marrow or fat (autogenous stem cells) or from the umbilical cord of a donor mother who has just given birth (allograft stem cells).
Stem cells have been shown recently to decrease soft tissue inflammation and promote healing of common soft tissue injuries including tendon, muscle and ligament tears. Stem cells have also been shown to decrease the inflammation of degenerative arthritis of the shoulder and knee and give prolonged symptomatic relief. There is no evidence, unfortunately as of yet, that stem cells grow new articular cartilage or reverse the degenerative changes of a joint. Hopefully, the future will be brighter in this battle to reverse the aging of damaged, arthritic joints.
The doctors at The Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute have been using PRP and stem cells for the past 3 years and are experts at deciding which treatments would benefit specific patients.
Please contact and visit us to discuss if you are a candidate for these new biologics which are keeping patients mobile and living life to the fullest.

Keep Moving!
Dr. Sisto

Welcome Dr. Saadat

The Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute is proud to announce that Dr. Saadat has joined our group. Dr. Ehsan Saadat is a spine specialist and is the best trained spine surgeon in the Valley.
Dr. Saadat attended the University of California Berkeley as an undergraduate, the University of California San Francisco Medical School and did his Orthopaedic residency at Harvard which is one of the top programs in the world. Dr. Saadat did a one year Fellowship at Emory University in Atlanta which is one of the top spine programs in the country.
Dr. Saadat will be concentrating on non-operative and operative treatment of all aspects of spinal disorders including deformity. His passion is patient care and he has already impressed all of the doctors he has worked with so far with his surgical skills and his compassionate care.
The Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute is one of the oldest and most prestigious orthopaedic group practices in Southern California and we are grateful and humbled that Dr. Saadat has chosen to join our group practice.
The highest level of spinal care is now available in Sherman Oaks and at our satellite office in Palmdale!! Dr. Saadat is looking forward to helping his patients to lead pain-free and energetic lives.

Keep Moving!!!
Dr. Sisto

Stem Cells: Are they right for you?

Biologic factors to enhance healing and treat degenerative arthritis are commonly being performed and our patients are constantly asking the doctors at Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute if Stem Cells or Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) are correct for them.

Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) is performed by taking a blood sample from the patient, spinning the blood down to isolate the growth factors and injecting these cells into the injured joint. The success rate varies depending on the diagnosis and chronicity of the disease. In general, soft tissue injuries including lateral epicondylitis of the elbow (“tennis elbow”), patellar tendonitis of the knee (“jumper’s knee”), iliotibial band tendonitis of the knee (“runner’s knee) and Achilles tendonitis respond best to PRP. Degenerative arthritis of either the shoulder, knee and hip can be significantly helped but the results can vary.

Stem cells are the  New buzz word and there is evolving evidence that they play a role in the treatment of musculoskeletal disease. Adult stem cells have the most promise for use right now and there are two types that are utilized. Both of the types are taken from the patient’s own body. A third type are amniotic cells taken from a donor.

There are advantages and disadvantages of each type but the best information a patient can get is discussing the possibilities with their doctor at Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute. All of our doctors are experts in Stem Cells and PRP and we will discuss whether these new and exciting treatment modalities will alleviate your pain and increase your mobility.

 

 

Practice Makes Perfect

The lead article in the October issue of The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery concluded that patients undergoing a total knee arthroplasty (replacement) with high volume physicians and hospital achieve better outcomes.  The Los Angeles Orthopaedic Institute including Drs. Sisto and Sobeck are very high volume total knee arthroplasty surgeons (greater than 145 per year) and we agree with the recert of this study “Practice does make perfect” and our high volume confirms this.  We strive to have the best outcomes with the lowest complication rates in Los Angeles.  Please visit us to learn more about our success at maximizing your surgical result following a knee surgery.

Keep moving!!!

Dr. Sisto