10
Featured on the Cover
Your Are in Good Hands at Advocare Stafford Orthopedics
The physicians at Stafford Orthopedics all have one thing in common: to try non-surgical forms of treatment first, recommending surgery only if conservative measures fail. Treating everything from injuries and diseases of bones, muscles, joints, peripheral nerves, as well as diabetic wounds and gait conditions, they are committed to both courteous and quality professional care. Caring for patients of all ages from infants to the elderly, their underlying philosophy behind all that they do is to treat the whole patient in the context of his or her life circumstances. A large part of their practice involves the treatment of broken bones, sports medicine and arthritis.
Getting to Know the Physicians Samuel E. Epstein, D.O. OCW: How did you get involved in the field of Orthopedic Medicine? Dr. Epstein: My father was a family doctor and in the summers he would take me to his office while he treated his patients. I knew at a young age that I wanted to become a doctor and help people. In high school and college I wrestled and played football. Needless to say, I had sports injuries that required treatment. The treatment of sports injuries was very interesting to me and I wanted to be able to take care of these musculoskeletal injuries both operatively and non-operatively. OCW: What are the most common conditions you treat on a daily basis? Dr. Epstein: We see a great deal of hip, knee, ankle, foot, shoulder, elbow, wrist, back, and neck pain due to injury or arthritis. We also see conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome and trigger fingers. OCW: What sets advocare l Stafford Orthopedics apart from other facilities like it? Dr. Epstein: We have been treating patients in Southern Ocean County for approximately 50 years and always treat the whole patient, considering their individual needs. In most cases, we believe in conservative treatment first. Only after this fails, do we recommend surgery. We understand most of the people we see are in pain and usually fit them in our schedule within a day; even if that means extended hours. Our office staff is very “user friendly” and competent. OCW: How do you stay current with the latest advances made in your field? Dr. Epstein: Being a doctor is a life long learning process. I constantly read journals and attend conferences and webinars to stay current. I am involved in hospital committee’s in which I use “Evidence Based Medicine” and “Best Practices” to develop the highest quality treatment protocols for my patients. However, there is no substitute for experience and we all learn by doing. I have been doing Orthopedic Surgery for 27 years and have had the opportunity to hone my craft.
OCW: Tell us about some of the more cutting edge options you offer your patients. Dr. Epstein: Many of our patients are faced with joint, muscle or tendon pain, which has not been resolved with medication, physical therapy, cortisone injections or viscosupplement injections (Synvisc). They may be contemplating surgery to alleviate their pain; or they may have resigned themselves to live with it. However, there are other options. One of those is Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) injections. You may have heard of high profile athletes going to Europe to have these injections. Your blood is made up of plasma (the liquid part of the blood) and cells. The cells in your blood include red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. The platelets help the blood to clot when you cut yourself. They also contain a high concentration of healing factors, which conveniently allow the cut to heal. To make PRP we draw your blood and spin it down in a centrifuge. When the blood is spun down, it separates into a layer of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. We draw off the platelet rich layer of the blood plasma (PRP) as this portion has a much higher concentration of healing factors. The PRP is then injected directly into the damaged tendon, muscle, or joint. PRP injections help the body to heal tendons and muscles damaged by injury or overuse and help to sooth the pain in arthritic joints. Although these injections are not FDA approved, I provide them to my patients. The reason they are not yet approved is that the FDA process of approval is very expensive. Unlike pharmaceutical drugs, PRP cannot be sold for profit since it’s obtained from your own blood. Therefore, there’s no financial incentive for companies to go through the expense of getting FDA approval. Unfortunately, without FDA Approval, most insurance will not cover the expense of obtaining the PRP. Many patients consider the expense worth it, if it can alleviate their pain or help them avoid surgery.
For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 609-597-6092 or visit www.advocarestaffordortho.com.
The County Woman Magazine www.TheCountyWoman.com
September/October 2016