Ask the Orthopedist: Dr. Strassberg

Why did you decide to specialize in pediatric orthopedics?

I have always enjoyed working with children. In addition, in pediatric orthopedics, we don’t focus on just one joint or body part; our focus is on a wider range of sports injuries, trauma-related injuries or congenital abnormalities. The variety of the injuries and conditions we see in our practice is very interesting to me.

Tell us a little more about your specialty, in particular.

While my practice encompasses all aspects of pediatric orthopedics, I see and treat many patients for sports- and trauma-related injuries and hip dysplasia, for which I underwent specialized training at Children’s Hospital in Boston.

Do you have a story about a special patient that you have treated?

There are so many examples of patients I have treated that stand out. For example, a five-year-old boy had fallen off some playground equipment and tore his ACL, which was unusual for someone so young. We treated him with a new and highly advanced technique; he later went on to play high school soccer. I have many stories like that. In other instances, I have quite a number of patients that I saw frequently during their youth due to repeated sports injuries, who were so impacted by our treatment that they went on to study orthopedics in medical school.

What is exciting to you about your field right now?

Pediatric orthopedics is ever-changing; while the kinds of injures and diseases we see remain the same, there are always new techniques and devices being introduced that allow us to perform procedures we could not have done in the past. This is especially true about those procedures that could potentially harm a child’s growth plate. Today, more minimally-invasive surgeries pose less risk to growing children. For example, we continue to see more younger children with torn ACLs – primarily due to the sports they are playing. Years ago, we could not have performed surgery because of the potential risks, but today, we can perform minimally-invasive surgery to safely reconstruct their ACLs and help them return to their normal, active lives. That is very exciting to me.

When you are not working, how do you like to enjoy your free time?

I like to play ball – baseball, soccer and football – with my two sons and spend time with my wife, especially being able to enjoy a beautiful dinner together.