Research: A Cornerstone of Orthopaedic Surgery Continue...

“Something that excites me is the possibility of working with the fantastic molecular biologists at the medical school,” Dr. Gatt says. “One of my interests is in connecting with someone doing basic research so that we might direct that kind of work toward orthopaedic studies.”

He adds that the medical school association paves the way for the addition of research personnel in the department. In private practice, he points out, there is neither time nor the necessary resources for follow-up on prospective studies.

“The medical school has been extremely helpful in offering us research assistants, and giving us an opportunity to collaborate with researchers in other departments,” he says. “Obviously, this underlines the capabilities of department clinicians engaging in research.”

The growth of the orthopaedic residency programs became an early priority of the new department, one subscribed to by both Timothy P. Leddy, MD, instructor of orthopaedic surgery and Dr. Gatt.

“The medical school has a history of attracting top candidates in its orthopaedic program,” Dr. Leddy says. “Those of us on the faculty are committed to accelerating recruitment efforts to draw the highest-caliber residents.”

He adds that the department is becoming more competitive in its recruitment efforts, and that Dr. Gatt conducts regularly scheduled meetings with all residents to review the research they are doing, and to stimulate brainstorming for new ideas.

Dr. Leddy’s own research centers on a bench study evaluation of techniques for treating forearm fractures. In adults, surgery is the only treatment for these fractures, and his research focuses on techniques that may decrease the complications of the procedure. His laboratory has designed an instrument that tests the procedure for bending and torsion in cadaver models. After generating a fracture of the bone, the lab repairs the fracture and then stresses it to failure. In this way, the research team is gathering valuable data comparing surgical approaches.

Another area of research being conducted in Dr. Gatt’s laboratory focuses on the mechanical testing of allografts, or tissue from cadavers used in ligament reconstruction of the knee. Until recently, surgeons discarded donor allografts if the donor was beyond 55 years of age. Dr. Gatt’s group spent more than two years assessing the impact of the donor’s age and gender on the mechanical properties of these tissues.

“Our extensive testing showed that tissue from a 60-year-old donor is just as effective as that from a 30-year-old donor, and donor gender is insignificant as well,” Dr. Gatt says.
The significance of this research is that allograft supply doesn’t meet the demand, and, prior to the study, the cutoff age was considered to be between 50 and 55. As a result of Dr. Gatt’s work, which has been presented at the American Academy of Ortho-
paedic Surgeons, an increase in the acceptable age of the donor is under way, and that will increase the supply of appropriate donor allografts.

With its compelling commitment to research, teaching, and comprehensive clinical care, the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery has taken a commanding leadership position that underlines the highest caliber of service to the RWJMS community.

Charles J. Gatt, Jr., MD ’89:
At Home, On the Field, and in the Lab

An alumnus who graduated from UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in 1989, and from the orthopaedic residency program in 1994, Dr. Gatt says he never left RWJMS for long.

Just about any autumn Friday evening, Charles J. Gatt, Jr., MD ’89, associate professor and chair, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, can be found on the sidelines of a high school football game. As a sub-specialist in sports medicine, Dr. Gatt treats injuries incurred by young athletes as well as by professionals. His presence at school athletic events makes it clear that one group is just as important to him as the other.

“The formalization of sports medicine has raised awareness of athletic injuries, and has placed emphasis on high school and college sports,” Dr. Gatt says. “My presence at games assures that a specialist is the first to examine an injury and decide whether or not a player should stay in the game, and what immediate treatment may be needed to avoid permanent damage.”

An alumnus who graduated from UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in 1989, and from the orthopaedic residency program in 1994, Dr. Gatt says he never left RWJMS for long. He followed his residency with a fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, and after two years on staff at Glendale Adventist Hospital in California, he returned to RWJMS as a clinical assistant professor in 1997. In 2003, when the division of orthopaedic surgery became a full department, he was appointed associate professor. Dr. Gatt met his wife, Sandra Gatt, MD, a plastic surgeon, while completing his residency at the medical school.

“I enjoyed my residency training tremendously,” he says. “I know many doctors say residency is laborious, but I never thought so. The people who were my role models were exceptional surgeons who took great care of their patients. Looking back, I think I was attracted to my field because orthopaedic surgeons seemed to enjoy their work.”
The role models to whom he refers include Joseph P. Leddy, MD, now retired clinical professor and former chair, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, and Joseph Zawadsky, MD, professor emeritus of orthopaedic surgery.

Dr. Gatt, who obviously enjoys both the clinical and the research elements of sports medicine, is a volunteer coach for Montgomery High School’s flag football, recreation basketball, and baseball teams, and is the team physician for Rider University and Hillsborough High School. He also is a member of the Skyland Conference Team Physicians’ Association, and is on the graduate faculty at the School of Biomedical Engineering at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

The recipient of the RWJMS Volunteer Faculty Award in 2003, Dr. Gatt currently is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and is co-investigator with Nicola C. Partridge, PhD, professor and chair, Department of Physiology and Biophysics, in an NIH-funded osteoarthritis research project. He has authored numerous publications, and has served on the editorial boards of the American Journal of Sports Medicine and the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery.

Although he says he has regrettably little time to participate in sports himself these days, Dr. Gatt has been a player since youth. He ran competitively in college and medical school, completing 80 to 100 miles a week. His commitment to his chosen sub-specialty is reflected not only in his clinical and research activities, but in his personal enjoyment of the game — almost any game. This is evident when he talks of the importance of injury prevention.

“Today, there is much more interest in the amateur athlete than ever before,” he says. “For instance, we conduct pre-season training that includes techniques for skiers in how to prevent knee injuries, and classes that teach simple exercises that can prevent the kind of shoulder injury that keeps golfers off the course.”

With his varied responsibilities, Dr. Gatt may not have much time to be part of the game these days. But he certainly hasn’t strayed far from the action.

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