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Ken Yuszkus/Staff photo Bert Connolly, an avid golfer, injured his shoulder at work a couple of years ago. Ken Yuszkus
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Dr. Robert McLaughlin is the only surgeon in the Boston area capable of doing a Graftjacket Matrix arthroscopic procedure on rotator cuff tears.
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Beverly Hospital doctor offers rare, innovative shoulder surgery
Dr. Robert McLaughlin feels there is a common misconception about getting quality medical care here on the North Shore.
Patients feel, McLaughlin says, that living in close proximity to Boston means they have to take advantage of the big-name hospitals located just miles away in the city.
McLaughlin understands the thinking, but he also feels that belief sometimes forces patients to overlook the quality care right in their own backyard.
McLaughlin is an orthopedic surgeon who works for Coastal Orthopedic Associates at Beverly Hospital, and he is proof that Boston isn't synonymous with "best." He is currently the only surgeon in the Boston area capable of doing an arthroscopic Graftjacket Matrix procedure to repair failed rotator cuff surgery.
"The big thing that excites me about it is that it's a procedure that we offer locally that isn't offered at other places," McLaughlin said. "There are not many people with the technical ability to even perform it, and we do it here at a small community hospital."
Sometimes rotator cuff surgeries aren't successful, and when they're not, the Graftjacket Matrix is the best way to repair the damage.
"The long and short of it is that when you are fixing them again from a defect in the repair or if there is tissue that doesn't look good, you sew in (the Graftjacket) on top of the repair," McLaughlin said. "Basically what it is is cadaver skin with the human dermis cells removed, filling in as scaffold for the body to grow its own cells in for repair."
McLaughlin completed the procedure last August on Salem resident Bert Connolly, an avid golfer who was injured at work.
Connolly, who sells pipe valves and fittings, was pulling a 6-inch pipe off his truck when he felt a pop.
"There was a lot of pain, and from that point on I could only lift my arm halfway," the 59-year-old Connolly said.
After being diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff, Connolly had surgery in late February 2009. It appeared that the procedure had fixed the problem, but Connolly suffered a setback while rehabbing the shoulder on June 1.
"I retore it. You can actually feel it pop," Connolly said. "I did it while training with a cable weight with 4 pounds on it actually."
Connolly was back on the operating table in August. Since McLauglin performed the Graftjacket, everything has been fine.
His shoulder is nearly back to 100 percent, and Connolly, whose son Scott is the athletic director and football coach at Salem High, hopes to get back on the golf course this month.
Because the Graftjacket is done arthroscopically, the recovery time is minimal.
"It's less painful and the recovery time is quicker," McLaughlin said. "It's not common to (retear). The success rate (of the initial surgery) is about 90 percent. The bigger the tear, the bigger chance it will retear, but for the most part they're very successful."
McLaughlin, who grew up in Virginia and attended medical school at the University of Virginia, doesn't want to downplay the quality of care at the large Boston hospitals. He just wants the community hospitals — namely Beverly — to get a little more recognition for what they can do.
"Little Beverly Hospital with community surgeons can do (some things) as good if not better than they can at major medical centers," McLaughlin said. "When it comes to innovative and advanced care, a lot of it is done in the community hospitals."
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