NEW ORLEANS (press release) – The Center for Orthopaedics and the LSU Health Foundation in New Orleans are pleased to announce the endowment of the David Drez, Jr., MD, Chair in Orthopaedic Sports Medicine. The Louisiana Board of Regents announced a matching a gift of $400,000 to complete the funding for an endowed Chair, an effort started by residents and fellows mentored by Dr. Drez, Dr. Drez’s colleague Dr. Clark Gunderson, several orthopaedic surgery device manufacturers and the Committee of 100 Champions of Excellence.
The Chair is a permanent testament to Dr. Drez’s innovation and dedication to academic excellence. He inspired and continues to inspire generations of young sports medicine doctors in his career that spans over 50 years.
Throughout his career, Dr. Drez was involved in medical research leading to many “firsts” in treatment advance. He has published a large body of research that focuses primarily on athletic injuries and their prevention and treatment options. Dr. Drez is co-author of Orthopedic Sports Medicine, the highly acclaimed guidebook for sports medicine physicians, physical therapists and athletic trainers; and was co-editor of Operative Techniques in Sports Medicine, as well as a multitude of journal articles.
Dr. Drez spent 20+ years instructing, educating and mentoring LSU orthopedic residents through a 3- month rotation and LSU orthopedic fellows through a 1-year rotation in Lake Charles. These professional and personal experiences remain some of his most memorable and personally rewarding ones.
It is these more than 100 LSU orthopedic surgeons and sports medicine specialists who rotated through his Lake Charles residency and fellowship programs and are now successful and accomplished surgeons and sports medicine specialists, who continue to honor their mentor through their generous gifts to the Dr. David Drez Jr. Chair in Orthopedic Sports Medicine.
A search committee for this position will initiate the search for a chair holder who will exemplify the characteristics of Dr. Drez and his work. It will be housed in the Department of Orthopaedics at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans.
