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Expert list · Last reviewed April 17, 2026

Best Orthopaedic Surgeons in California: 6 to Know

Best orthopaedic surgeons in California, profiled by subspecialty strength, hospital setting, and the research that shapes their care.

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California has a deep bench of best-in-class orthopaedic surgeons, many of whom wrote the research that shapes how bone, joint, and soft-tissue injuries are treated today. Here are six to know, grouped by what they actually do in clinic.

Orthopaedics is a wide field. A shoulder problem, a worn-out hip, a sports injury, and a foot deformity all fall under the same specialty, but the right doctor for each is different. The surgeons below practice at Stanford, Cedars-Sinai, Keck Medicine of USC, and UCLA-affiliated centers. Each runs a subspecialty service, teaches residents, and has published research that other surgeons cite when making decisions about your care.

David Thordarson

David Thordarson, M.D.

Director of Orthopaedic Research, Professor of Orthopaedics

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

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Dr. David Thordarson directs orthopaedic research at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in West Hollywood and focuses on foot and ankle surgery. He treats heel fractures, ankle sprains that never fully healed, adult flatfoot, and the sort of complex reconstructions that happen after a serious injury. His randomized trial comparing surgery to casting for broken calcaneus bones 1 is still used to decide who benefits from an operation. He also co-led the 2020 consensus that redefined adult flatfoot as progressive collapsing foot deformity 4, changing how the condition is classified and treated.

Stuart Goodman

Stuart Goodman, MD, PHD

Professor of Surgery and Professor, by courtesy, of Bioengineering

Pelvic Health Center, Stanford University School of Medicine

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Dr. Stuart Goodman is a joint replacement surgeon at Stanford Health Care in Redwood City, with a lab focused on why artificial hips and knees sometimes loosen. In clinic, he handles primary and revision hip and knee replacements, including cases where a previous implant has failed. His research on how immune cells called macrophages respond to implant wear particles 10 and to fracture healing 7 explains the biology behind what patients feel as pain or stiffness years after surgery.

Amy Ladd

Amy Ladd, MD

Professor of Surgery, Emerita

Pelvic Health Center, Stanford University School of Medicine

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Dr. Amy Ladd is a hand and wrist surgeon at Stanford Health Care who treats thumb arthritis, distal radius (wrist) fractures, and nerve problems like carpal tunnel. Her anatomical study of the thumb ligaments 15 is a reference point for reconstructive procedures done across the country. She also led a trial showing a bone cement called Norian SRS allowed faster rehabilitation after certain wrist fractures 12, and she has been a national advocate for bringing more women into orthopaedic surgery 13.

Emilie Cheung

Emilie Cheung, MD

Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery; Chief, Shoulder and Elbow Service

Stanford University Medical Center

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Dr. Emilie Cheung leads the Shoulder and Elbow Service at Stanford University Medical Center. She treats rotator cuff tears, shoulder arthritis, fractures around the shoulder and elbow, and the complex revision cases that follow failed replacements. Her multicenter trial on displaced collarbone fractures 16 helped define when a plate-and-screw fix works better than a sling, and her review of complications after reverse total shoulder replacement 17 is one of the most cited resources used to counsel patients about realistic risks.

Richard Ferkel

Richard Ferkel, M.D.

Director, Sports Medicine Fellowship Program, Southern California Orthopedic Institute; Assistant Clinical Professor of Orthopedic Surgery, UCLA

UCLA West Valley Medical Center

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Dr. Richard Ferkel practices at UCLA West Valley Medical Center in the Los Angeles area and directs the sports medicine fellowship at the Southern California Orthopedic Institute. He helped establish ankle arthroscopy as a routine procedure. His early paper defining SLAP labral tears of the shoulder 21 remains one of the most cited works in sports medicine, and his description of anterolateral ankle impingement 26 gave surgeons a name and a treatment for the chronic pain that can follow a bad sprain.

Daniel Oakes

Daniel Oakes, M.D.

Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Keck School of Medicine of USC; Director, USC Joint Replacement Program

Keck Hospital of USC

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Dr. Daniel Oakes directs the USC Joint Replacement Program at Keck Hospital of USC, with clinical focus on hip and knee replacement and revisions. His biomechanical research on anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) graft placement 27 and on posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) reconstruction 29 is the type of work that informs where surgeons drill tunnels in the operating room. He has also published a national analysis tracking how quickly computer navigation and robotic assistance are being adopted in knee replacement 28.

What to look for in an orthopaedic surgeon

  • Board certification in orthopaedic surgery
  • Fellowship training in the subspecialty that matches your problem (sports medicine, foot and ankle, hand, joint replacement, shoulder and elbow, spine)
  • Academic affiliation with a teaching hospital if your case is complex
  • High annual volume of the specific procedure you may need
  • Accepting new patients within a reasonable wait time
  • In-network with your insurance plan

Questions to ask before your first appointment

  • How many patients with my condition do you treat each year?
  • Is surgery my only option, or should I try physical therapy or injections first?
  • What is the recovery timeline for the procedure you are recommending?
  • What are the most common complications, and how often do they happen in your practice?
  • Will you do the surgery yourself, or will a fellow or resident be involved?
  • What outcomes do you track, and how do yours compare to national benchmarks?

The bottom line

Use this list as a starting point, not a ranking. Match the surgeon to your problem: a foot deformity belongs with a foot and ankle specialist, a torn rotator cuff with a shoulder service, a worn-out hip with a joint replacement program. If your primary care doctor suggests orthopaedics, ask for a referral to a subspecialist, and confirm the surgeon treats your exact condition often before you book.

Sources

  1. 1.
    Operative vs. Nonoperative Treatment of Intra-Articular Fractures of the Calcaneus: A Prospective Randomized Trial — Foot & Ankle International, 1996. DOI
  2. 2.
    The Effect of Fibular Malreduction on Contact Pressures in an Ankle Fracture Malunion Model* — Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, 1997. DOI
  3. 3.
    Dynamic Support of the Human Longitudinal Arch — Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, 1995. DOI
  4. 4.
    Classification and Nomenclature: Progressive Collapsing Foot Deformity — Foot & Ankle International, 2020. DOI
  5. 5.
    Ankle Syndesmotic Injury — Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 2007. DOI
  6. 6.
    Iron oxide nanoparticles inhibit tumour growth by inducing pro-inflammatory macrophage polarization in tumour tissues — Nature Nanotechnology, 2016. DOI
  7. 7.
    Inflammation, fracture and bone repair — Bone, 2016. DOI
  8. 8.
    100% Clean and Renewable Wind, Water, and Sunlight All-Sector Energy Roadmaps for 139 Countries of the World — Joule, 2017. DOI
  9. 9.
    Mesenchymal stem cell-macrophage crosstalk and bone healing — Biomaterials, 2018. DOI
  10. 10.
    Macrophage polarization: An opportunity for improved outcomes in biomaterials and regenerative medicine — Biomaterials, 2012. DOI
  11. 11.
    In Situ Hybridization Studies of Stromelysin and Collagenase Messenger RNA Expression in Rheumatoid Synovium — Arthritis & Rheumatism, 1991. DOI
  12. 12.
    NORIAN SRS CEMENT COMPARED WITH CONVENTIONAL FIXATION IN DISTAL RADIAL FRACTURES — Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, 2003. DOI
  13. 13.
    The Perry Initiative's Medical Student Outreach Program Recruits Women Into Orthopaedic Residency — Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, 2016. DOI
  14. 14.
    Measuring wrist and hand function: Common scales and checklists — Injury, 2010. DOI
  15. 15.
    Macroscopic and Microscopic Analysis of the Thumb Carpometacarpal Ligaments — Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, 2012. DOI
  16. 16.
    Nonoperative Treatment Compared with Plate Fixation of Displaced Midshaft Clavicular Fractures. A Multicenter, Randomized Clinical Trial — Yearbook of Hand and Upper Limb Surgery, 2008. DOI
  17. 17.
    Complications in Reverse Total Shoulder Arthroplasty — Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 2011. DOI
  18. 18.
    Rate of Improvement in Clinical Outcomes with Anatomic and Reverse Total Shoulder Arthroplasty — Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, 2017. DOI
  19. 19.
    Spondylolysis and Spondylolisthesis in Children and Adolescents: I. Diagnosis, Natural History, and Nonsurgical Management — Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 2006. DOI
  20. 20.
    Surgical Approaches to the Elbow — Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 2009. DOI
  21. 21.
    SLAP lesions of the shoulder — Arthroscopy The Journal of Arthroscopic and Related Surgery, 1990. DOI
  22. 22.
    Accuracy of diagnoses from magnetic resonance imaging of the knee. A multi-center analysis of one thousand and fourteen patients. — Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, 1991. DOI
  23. 23.
    Arthroscopy--'no-problem surgery'. An analysis of complications in two thousand six hundred and forty cases. — Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, 1986. DOI
  24. 24.
    Partial thickness rotator cuff tears: Results of arthroscopic treatment — Arthroscopy The Journal of Arthroscopic and Related Surgery, 1991. DOI
  25. 25.
    Arthroscopic treatment of anterolateral impingement of the ankle — The American Journal of Sports Medicine, 1991. DOI
  26. 26.
    Effects of femoral tunnel placement on knee laxity and forces in an anterior cruciate ligament graft — Journal of Orthopaedic Research®, 2002. DOI
  27. 27.
    Trends in computer navigation and robotic assistance for total knee arthroplasty in the United States: an analysis of patient and hospital factors — Arthroplasty Today, 2019. DOI
  28. 28.
    A Biomechanical Comparison of Tibial Inlay and Tibial Tunnel Posterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Techniques — The American Journal of Sports Medicine, 2002. DOI
  29. 29.
    The Cost of Getting Into Orthopedic Residency: Analysis of Applicant Demographics, Expenditures, and the Value of Away Rotations — Journal of surgical education, 2016. DOI
  30. 30.
    BIOMECHANICAL COMPARISON OF TIBIAL INLAY AND TIBIAL TUNNEL TECHNIQUES FOR RECONSTRUCTION OF THE POSTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT — Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, 2002. DOI

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