It’s been two years since the newest office of Florida Orthopaedic Institute opened in the Shoppes of Wesley Chapel on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd., directly across from Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel (FHWC).
The staff and doctors at the office are meeting the increasing demand for specialized orthopaedic care that can help the residents of Wesley Chapel and nearby communities stay active.
The Board-certified doctors and surgeons at Florida Orthopaedic Institute have been recognized globally for their expertise. Headquartered in North Tampa, the Wesley Chapel office is the tenth for the practice, which has been open for 27 years and now serves patients in or near Bloomingdale, Brandon, Citrus Park, Northdale, Oak Hill/Brooksville, Palm Harbor, South Tampa, Sun City Center, Temple Terrace and Wesley Chapel/New Tampa.
The Wesley Chapel office offers physician services, physical therapy and X-rays, with three Board-certified physicians on staff:
• Christopher Baker, M.D., a fellowship-trained specialist in sports medicine and shoulder reconstruction;
• Brian Palumbo, M.D., who specializes in hip and knee replacement surgery, with a focus on diagnosing and treating hip and knee arthritis, and
• Timothy Epting, D.O., orthopaedic foot & ankle surgeon, who focuses on injuries and disorders of the foot and ankle and general orthopaedic conditions.
To maintain the highest level of orthopaedic skill, Florida Orthopaedic Institute only employs doctors who have had fellowship training.
“This additional training is just part of what sets us apart,” says Dr. Baker, “especially when the sophisticated work of joints is involved. In order to keep our patients active, the precision of the treatment is paramount to success.”
Dr. Baker, a partner at Florida Orthopaedic Institute, has been with the group for four years and has practiced in the area for seven. He graduated cum laude with his M.D. degree from the University of Florida in Gainesville and completed his residency in Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. His fellowship at the Steadman Hawkins Clinic of the Carolinas (in Spartanburg, SC) gave him an extra year of study in sports medicine and shoulder reconstruction, making him the only fellowship-trained shoulder specialist in eastern Pasco County.
He also has been very influential in high school athletics, since he assisted in opening the sports medicine programs at Wesley Chapel and Zephyrhills high schools. Dr. Baker continues to serve as the team physician for several schools in both Pasco and Hillsborough Counties. He also treats professional athletes and has served as the orthopaedic and sports medicine physician for the Tampa Bay Storm Arena Football League team.
In addition to caring for athletes, he also treats patients who have shoulder pain stemming from aging or injury. Many patients avoid shoulder treatment because they are afraid they will need surgery or because of the misconception that pain is a normal part of aging, but Dr. Baker always informs his patients about all available alternatives.
“There are a lot of options other than surgery, like physical therapy or cortisone injections,’’ he says. “Our mission is to do what is best for the individual patient.”
Even when surgery is necessary, Dr. Baker says he does not go straight to invasive surgical techniques. He uses the latest technologies and says that many repairs are done with an arthroscope to minimize incisions, pain and recovery time. The other doctors at Florida Orthopaedic Institute, like Dr. Palumbo, also believe that minimizing surgical trauma and muscle damage should be a high priority for any surgeon.
Speaking of Dr. Palumbo, he served in the Special Operations Command for the U.S. Air Force. He later earned his M.D. degree from the University of South Florida in Tampa, where he also served as a resident in USF’s Department of Orthopedics & Sports Medicine. After that, he attended Harvard Medical School’s Hip & Knee reconstruction surgical fellowship for one year at Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston, MA.
Dr. Palumbo specializes in hip and knee arthritis management, joint replacement surgery and the treatment of failed or painful hip and knee joint replacements. He is Board-certified by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, a member of the American Association of Hip & Knee Surgeons, and serves as an assistant professor for the University of South Florida’s Orthopaedic Residency Program.
There are several unique aspects to Dr. Palumbo’s orthopaedic practice. He is a proponent of the direct anterior approach (DAA), also known as the frontal approach, for hip replacements. He says this technique minimizes surgical trauma and allows for faster recovery and decreased pain. He explains that, “Rather than cutting through or damaging muscles (with the DAA approach), you’re simply spreading certain muscles to the side, using their natural tissue planes. It’s like opening a window versus breaking through it.”
His approach to joint replacement surgery also includes a technique for total knee replacements called Kinematic Knee Alignment. This technique is unique in that the goal of the surgery is to restore the natural position and dynamics of the knee joint, rather than implanting it in an alignment that the surgeon believes is correct.
“Conventional total knee arthroplasty implants the knee where the surgeon thinks it belongs, while kinematic alignment implants the knee replacement in a way that attempts to replicate (that) knee before (the patient) had arthritis,” he states.
Dr. Palumbo also is an advocate for partial (rather than total) knee replacements whenever possible. He feels that sparing hip and knee joint muscles and preserving bone (when possible) can lead to improved and faster recovery and long-term outcomes.
He also firmly believes in the importance of fellowship-trained, specialized surgeons. “The added training and expertise this provides allows us to care for complex failed and painful joint replacement issues,” he says. “Approximately 30 percent of joint replacements I perform are re-do replacements for old or failed joint replacements.”
An Emphasis On Education
Educating patients is a core philosophy at the Florida Orthopaedic Institute, whose surgeons encourage patients to seek out options to ensure that they are getting a doctor who is experienced in treating their particular type of injury.
Dr. Epting is an orthopaedic foot and ankle surgeon, the only one in Pasco County. He is Board-certified and did his fellowship training at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
Prior to joining the Florida Orthopaedic Institute team, Dr. Epting served three years as an orthopaedic surgeon at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Jacksonville, FL. He also served as an orthopaedic surgeon in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal in 2010. “My military experience and fellowship training allow me to explore all options for my patients so they can receive the best possible care,” he says.
Dr. Epting treats sports injuries of the ankle/foot (fractures, ligament and tendon injuries), as well as arthritis (fusions and ankle replacement) and foot & ankle deformities. He utilizes non-surgical measures (bracing and physical therapy) as well as surgical repair, arthroscopy and reconstruction, when appropriate. Orthopaedic surgery training gives him insight into foot and ankle conditions, as well as their impact on the body as a whole.
For more info, stop in at Florida Orthopaedic Institute’s Wesley Chapel office at 2653 BBD, or visit FloridaOrtho.com. The Wesley Chapel location is open Mon.-Fri., 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Call (800) FL-ORTHO for appointments.
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