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Dr. Paul Meli, Orthopaedic Surgeon
Author: | Wednesday September 26, 2007
Dr. Paul Meli enjoys his work, community and family life and that comes through in his interaction with patients and referring professionals.
A "Hip" Doctor
Dr. Paul Meli, Known for Knee
And Shoulder Surgery Expertise
Has "Scoped Out" New Procedure
Over the past sixteen years, Paul Meli, M.D. has restored motion and relieved the agony of thousands of patients suffering from shoulder and knee pain. Many of those patients were injured while at work and the surgery performed by the Fort Lauderdale physician often helped the individuals return to their jobs and to their lives.
For some practitioners having the expertise to successfully repair shoulders and knees might have been rewarding enough, but Dr. Meli is constantly seeking to educate himself on the latest developments in orthopedic and reconstructive surgery.
"I have always tried to learn something new related to my profession on a constant basis. I am a perpetual student," Dr. Meli told the Voice during a recent interview.
The latest new procedure he learned was to repair injuries to the hip through an arthroscopic surgical method. Until this procedure was developed, patients with painful hips due to injury or disease had to wait until the situation got so bad that a hip replacement was the only option.
"One of my first workers' compensation patients with a hip injury came from Tampa. He worked for a courier company and was just 34 years old," Dr. Meli recounted. "He had fractured his hip in a fall and had been to three orthopedic surgeons and the consensus was that he needed a hip replacement." After Dr. Meli determined through examination that an arthroscopic hip procedure was appropriate for the injured worker the surgery took place.
"We scoped the hip and made the repairs in a forty-five-minute surgery. The patient was on crutches for a time and then went back to sedentary work while he healed," Dr. Meli said. If everything goes as planned, the worker's hip should be as good as it was before it was injured. The ramifications of that outcome compared to a hip replacement that might last only ten years, are clear.
Dr. Meli educated himself on the new procedure because therapists working with clients told him about the needs of their patients. It is in keeping with his outgoing and communicative nature that such dialogue would happen in the first place. In an age where many physicians merge their practices with others, Dr. Meli has maintained his independent offices near downtown Fort Lauderdale for the last sixteen years. He is accessible to adjusters, therapists, referring physicians and case managers and said he makes it a point to see worker compensation patients immediately and then provide timely follow-up reports.
Each year he travels to the Florida Workers' Compensation conference to meet with colleagues and friends, educate himself on the latest developments in workers compensation and connect with the therapists and adjusters who send him patients throughout the year. He also provides evaluations and second opinions, is a certified CEU instructor and court appointed Expert Medical Advisor.
As busy as he is, Dr. Meli finds a way to balance professional and family life. Just a few days after the interview for this article, Dr. Meli's wife gave birth to twin girls to join the son and daughter they already have at home. "I try to make it a point to be home for dinner every evening and carve out opportunities to spend quality time with my family," Dr. Meli said.
Ed. Note: Paul Meli, MD, FACS, FAAOS, Diplomate, American Board of Orthopedic Surgery can be reached at The Shoulder, Knee & Hip Center of South Florida. Call 954-771-8177 for information on this article. You can also visit www.shoulderkneecentercom.
Arthroscopic Hip Surgery
Arthroscopic hip surgery may be used to treat a variety of conditions, primarily the treatment of labral tears, hip impingement, articular cartilage injuries and removal of loose bodies in the joint, among other conditions.
Through an incision the width of a straw, the surgeon is able to insert a scope, which allows the doctor to inspect the joint and locate the source of pain. Then one or more small incisions are made to accommodate the instruments used to treat the hip. Most often this is an outpatient surgical procedure.
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