First Stop: UCSF, San Francisco
June 19 - June 21, 2024
After a long journey from Asia, the APKASS—AOSSM traveling fellows arrived at San Francisco International Airport, eager to begin our four-week tour across the United States. Our host, Dr. Nicholas Colyvas from UCSF, welcomed us and drove us to the Intercontinental San Francisco hotel, where we first saw the city’s famous fog rolling over the bay.
Our first day was relaxed, allowing us to rest and recover from the flight. In the evening, we enjoyed a warm welcome dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant hosted by Dr. Benjamin Ma, Dr. Brian Feeley, and the UCSF team—a perfect start to our journey.
The next day was packed with memorable experiences. We began by hiking at the Presidio Tunnel Tops, enjoying stunning Golden Gate Bridge views despite the unexpectedly chilly weather. We then headed to the UCSF Orthopaedic Institute for our first academic sessions, fueled by delicious burgers from a local food truck. Our hosts shared ground-breaking research, including studies on the centralization technique for meniscus root repair and ACL reconstruction using postless suture augmentation. These presentations sparked lively discussions and inspired us with new approaches and insights.
In the afternoon, we were treated to a scenic drive past the Chase Center, home of the Golden State Warriors. Later, we enjoyed a seafood dinner featuring San Francisco’s famous Dungeness crab and oysters with the UCSF sports medicine division. To top off the day, we had an exciting ride in a Waymo self-driving car, experiencing the future of transportation firsthand.
Our final day in San Francisco was focused on surgical observation at the UCSF Orthopaedic Institute. I started my day with Dr. Alan Zhang, observing a precise hip arthroscopy for a patient with femoroacetabular impingement. Then, we observed Dr. Ma performing a short Quad tendon ACL reconstruction, followed by a meniscus root repair and a lateral extra-articular tenodesis.
We concluded our visit with a comforting Chinese-style seafood dinner with Dr. Ma, Dr. Zhang, and the UCSF fellows, bringing a taste of home to our final evening in San Francisco. It was a perfect ending to a visit filled with learning, cultural exchange, and memorable experiences.
Stop 2: Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), New York (Jun 22- 25)
June 22 - June 25, 2024
After an exciting start on the West Coast, we went to the second stop of the APKASS/AOSSM traveling fellowship: New York City. Upon landing at John F. Kennedy International Airport, we were met by our driver, who skillfully navigated the busy traffic of Manhattan, delivering us to the heart of the city that never sleeps. That evening, the fellows gathered at a renowned American steakhouse, where we shared a delicious porterhouse steak.
Sunday was a day to explore the cultural gems of the city. Dr. Marigi, an HSS fellow, and his wife kindly hosted us for an authentic New York experience—a Broadway show. We fueled up with quick bites at Five Guys before heading to the theater for "Hamilton." The musical lived up to its reputation, telling the story of Alexander Hamilton with electrifying hip-hop music and dynamic performances. Thanks to Dr. Anil Ranawat's suggestion to read up on Hamilton's life beforehand, I could fully appreciate the nuances of the performance. Afterward, we soaked in the energy of Times Square, dazzled by the neon lights and buzzing crowds.
Monday morning began with an official welcome from Dr. Anil Ranawat at the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), where we joined the HSS fellows for a didactic conference. The session featured thought-provoking case discussions, particularly on the role of tibial slope correction in revision ACL reconstruction. Following the conference, we toured the HSS Biomechanics Lab, a remarkable facility driving cutting-edge research in sports medicine.
Our day continued in the operating rooms, where we had the chance to observe Dr. Sabrina Strickland and Dr. Andreas Gomoll in action. I was particularly excited to see several fresh osteochondral allograft transplantations and a tibial tubercle osteotomy, which was my first time witnessing the osteochondral allograft procedure. The OR observation ended around 1 p.m., and we grabbed sandwiches from Chick-fil-A for a relaxed lunch in the park, where we watched locals enthusiastically play pickleball.
That evening, the HSS Sports Medicine Institute team treated us to an elegant dinner at the Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel. Led by Dr. Anil Ranawat and Dr. Andrew Pearle, the gathering provided a wonderful opportunity to connect with HSS sports medicine surgeons and fellows. The conversations flowed as freely as the wine.
Our final morning in New York was spent at HSS, where the APKASS fellows presented our research topics at the Sports Medicine Institute. It was an incredible honor to meet Dr. Russell Warren, a legend in sports medicine, who generously shared his wealth of knowledge and experience in surgical techniques.
Stop 3: Duke University/ University of North Carolina (Jun 25-29)
On 25/6, we arrived in Durham and joined the 5th Annual William Garrett Sports Medicine Research Day. We listened to the excellent presentations of the Duke University fellows, all of whom are of a very high standard. We then headed to the farewell dinner for the Duke fellows. There was a lot of laughter, which showed the excellent relationship formed; they were literally like a big, happy family.
After a good night of rest, we attended the Grand Round for the Visiting Professor presentation by Dr Thomas Best, who shared his insight on the latest concepts of osteoarthritis. This was followed by a lunch meeting organised by Dr Taylor, during which we discussed the importance of leadership, shared ideas with other fellows, and learned beyond the scope of Orthopaedics. After lunch, we attended a well-organised cadaveric lab session, a regular event for the residents and fellows from both Duke and UNC, providing excellent learning opportunities.
On 27/6, we visited Duke's operating rooms for a Quad-Tendon ACL reconstruction, an ACL repair (BEAR), and an ACL reconstruction with LET. All of these procedures were expertly performed. In the afternoon, we visited the Duke basketball and football sports facilities. They were well-equipped and modern, providing excellent support for the athletes throughout the year.
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The next day, we visited the UNC operating rooms for an MPFL reconstruction with gracilis allograft and an ACL reconstruction with BTB allograft. The cases were smooth and performed with elegance. After the surgeries, there was an academic session where we presented along with the faculty from both Duke and UNC. It was thoroughly enjoyable. We had a round of golf after dinner at Top Golf, ending the day with laughter.
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Stop 4: University of Maryland Baltimore (Jun 29-July 3)
Arriving on the afternoon of 29/6, we attended a dinner with the faculty and residents led by the Chairman of Orthopaedics, Dr Frank Henn. The dinner was held at Dr Packer's home, with a stunning view over the inner harbour. We were treated to a selection of top-quality wine. The food, the wine, the company, and the harbour view made it a perfect evening.
The following day, we toured the University of Maryland's sporting facilities. The football stadium was huge and could hold 60,000 people. After the tour of the football facility, we headed to Washington DC, where we visited the White House and the monument. It was quite a long walk for a hot day, and how Dr Henn made it look easy while carrying a backpack cooler loaded with dozens of cold drinks was genuinely impressive. This puts us to shame in comparison. We toured the Space Museum and the Natural History Museum leisurely after lunch before having dinner at a Spanish restaurant, and the tasting menu was fantastic.
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On 1/7, we visited the operating rooms and observed a beautifully performed ACLR case with hamstring autograft, LET, and meniscal root tear repair for a college athlete. There was also a case of hip arthroscopy which was performed to an equally high standard.
After the surgeries, we had an academic session, during which research presentations by the faculty and Travelling Fellows followed case presentations by the residents. The interaction between scientists and clinicians was exciting and generated many interesting discussions.
On the following day, we had the opportunity to visit the world-renowned Shock Trauma Center and observe the trauma grand round, which included discussions on many exciting cases. We then visited the sports operating room for a case of discoid meniscus for saucerization before concluding our visit.
Stop 5: Cleveland Clinic (July 3-7)
July 3 (Wed): When we arrived at the Cleveland airport, and Dr. Lutul Farrow kindly welcomed us and drove to our hotel which was located next to Cleveland Clinic main campus. After a short rest, we had a dinner with Dr. Farrow and his family at his house. We are very thankful to receive Cleveland Guardians (Major League Baseball team of which Cleveland Clinic takes care) uniform with each name and number 24 (the year of fellowship). After the dinner, we went to the orchestra at Blossom, where we relaxed and enjoyed nice music and great atmosphere. The day was concluded by great fireworks.
On July 4 (Thu), which was a national holiday, we had taken a rest at the hotel in the morning, and headed to Guardians home game versus White Sox at Progressive Field with Dr. Farrow and the sports fellow. The atmosphere was great, and getting further better when Guardians won the game. We then enjoy the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Museum.
The next day (July 5), we visited Sports Medicine Center, where we visited the operating rooms and observed beautifully performed surgeries by Dr. Farrow and Dr. Saluan including MPFL reconstruction, tibial tuberosity osteotomy, lateral lengthening, ACLR w/QT autograft, high tibial osteotomy and osteochondral allograft transplantation. MPFL reconstruction was performed using ST autograft with native MPFL reimplication. After the surgeries, we had an academic session, during which research presentations by the faculty and Travelling Fellows, and we had great and fruitful knowledge exchanges and discussion.
The final day at Cleveland concluded with a tour to Certified Angus Beef Farm and Dr. Bergfeld provided a unique and interesting lecture about US cattle industry.
We greatly appreciate exceptional hospitality and arrangements by Dr. Farrow and his team!
Stop 6: Herodicus meeting, Tabernash, CO (July 8-10)
It was supposed to be to be Houston Methodist/UT Health (7/7-10), but unfortunately the itinerary has been cancelled because Hurricane Beryl Houston.
We left Cleveland for Houston early in the morning on July 7 (Sun), and arrived at Houston airport in the afternoon. As soon as we landed, we have got to know that the itinerary has been cancelled because Hurricane Beryl would hit Houston the next day. We are very sad as we were looking forward to visiting, but we then had to fly to Portland, Oregon to escape from it. We arrived at the Sheraton Portland Airport hotel around 10pm (1am at Cleveland) which took about 19 hours after leaving the hotel at Cleveland. It was a very tough day for us and we moved about 5000 km (3000 miles) with three flights.
Thanks to kind arrangements by Dr. Lowe and his team, we got an invaluable opportunity to attend the 50th Herodicus Society annual meeting at Devil’s Thumb Ranch near Denver. So, we left the hotel at 9am and had a flight to Denver, and arrived at Devil’s Thumb Ranch around 5pm on July 8. We had warmest welcome from Dr. Bush-Joseph (president), Dr. Lowe, Dr. Keading, Dr. Taylor and all the members. We learned a lot from the academic session with interesting and deep discussions, and had many great reunions, and enjoyed our first fly-fishing with beautiful views and nice weather. The cool and dry climate was comfortable and the view from our cottage was amazingly beautiful. We felt how lucky we are to attend this prestigious society meeting.
We can’t thank you enough for wonderful hospitality by Dr. Lowe, and we also appreciate Dr. McCulloch and Dr. Gregory for preparing the itinerary at Houston although we could not make it.
Final Stop (Stop 7): AOSSM annual meeting, Denver, CO (July 10-14)
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We arrived at the final stop (AOSSM annual meeting at Denver) in the afternoon on July 10. In the evening, we were invited to the Leadership Dinner at Denver Art Museum, where Dr. Dean Taylor, the AOSSM president this year, kindly introduced us to other attendees. The annual meeting started the next day, and there were great academic sessions including some great debate sessions. There were great reunions with hosts, friends, and colleagues. We were truly honored to receive the certificate of this fellowship with Dr. Dean Taylor (president), Dr. Steven Cohen (chair of fellowship committee), and Dr. Werner Mueller, who is the legend and one of the founders of this fellowship during the Traveling Fellows Reception on July 12. The fellowship concluded with Closing Night Event at the Wings over the Rockies Air & Space Museum. After wrapping up the conference, we packed up for the long journey home, and left Denver on July 14.
It is our great honor and privilege to complete this amazing fellowship, which gave us wonderful experiences, a lot of multidisciplinary learning, and lifelong friendships throughout the tour. We would like to express our gratitude to ENOVIS for their generous funding of the Traveling Fellowship. We would like to thank APKASS, AOSSM, fellowship committee, and all the gracious hosts during our visits for the privilege of this priceless experience.
