Andrew Pearle, MD

Dr. Andrew Pearle is chief of the Sports Medicine Institute at HSS. A board-certified orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Pearle's clinical interests include arthroscopic and robotic surgery of the shoulder, knee and ankle. He is director of the Computer Assisted Surgery Center at HSS and editor-in-chief of Techniques in Knee Surgery, an orthopedic journal.

After 9/11, he traveled to Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem during the height of the intifada to assist in the care of terror victims. While participating in this care, Dr. Pearle was inspired by the pioneering use of computer assisted surgery (CAS) at Hadassah. "Hadassah surgeons modified computer-assisted surgery tools designed for the spine, and applied the technology to remove shrapnel," he recalls.

After Dr. Pearle was recruited as an attending orthopedic surgeon at HSS, he was selected to develop one of the first computer-assisted surgery programs in the United States. Computer-assisted surgery uses navigation, which is like a "GPS for orthopedic surgery," says Dr. Pearle, who conducts research to bring these techniques from bench to bedside. He is one of the leading orthopedic surgeons nationwide in terms of the number of robotic and computer-assisted procedures he performs. 

In addition to his responsibilities at HSS, Dr. Pearle is an associate team physician for the New York Mets and coordinates care for minor league affiliates, including the Brooklyn Cyclones. Dr. Pearle has published more than 90 original manuscripts, predominantly on topics related to ACL reconstruction, robotic partial knee replacement and computer assisted-surgery.

He was one of three keynote speakers at the 2016 American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS) Annual Meeting’s “Game Changers Paper Session,” an event focusing on the importance of innovations in orthopedics, such as the use of robotics during surgery. Dr. Pearle explained the evolution of robotics technology in orthopedic surgery and its impact on surgical outcomes. He also presented data indicating that when partial knee replacement surgery is completed with robotic technologies, revision surgery is less likely to be needed.

Through the use of these technologies, orthopedic surgeons at HSS are able to create virtual pre-operative treatment plans to better predict surgical outcomes and then execute those plans in the operating room. This form of precision medicine leads to more personalized care.