Dr. Gordon is a recently retired orthopedic surgeon whose practice was limited exclusively to treatment of patients with hand and wrist problems. He is a Clinical Professor Emeritus of Orthopedic Hand Surgery at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio where he taught resident surgeons for 30 years. In addition to his Board Certification in Orthopedic Surgery he holds a Certificate of Added Qualifications (CAQ) in Surgery of the Hand and is an emeritus member of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand. He did undergraduate work at the University of Michigan and at Bishop’s University in Quebec, Canada where he obtained a BSc (Honors) degree with a double major in Biology and Psychology. He did cardiovascular and hemodynamic research for several years before entering medical school. He earned his MD degree from the University of Sherbrooke in 1981 (also in Quebec, Canada) and completed his orthopedic surgical residency at the same institution. He then did a Fellowship in Hand and Micro-neurovascular Surgery at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque with Dr. George E. Omer, one of the founding fathers of hand surgery in the United States.
Dr. Gordon treated amateur and professional musicians on many occasions during his years of practice and developed a deep respect and appreciation for their skills, their dedication, and particularly for the special demands they place on their upper extremities. He hopes to help musicians better understand the functional intricacies of their hands and wrists in order to give them more objective means to avoid injury and to know when to seek appropriate and specialized treatment if it should become necessary.
Following his first lecture on the Musician’s Hand and Wrist at CPI 2017, Dr. Gordon expanded his research to a 50+ page PDF document and published it on his website, www.musicianshandandwrist.com This invaluable and entirely free educational document was created specifically for professional musicians interested in understanding sources of hand and wrist pain using concepts and physiology from the 21st century. It features:
Part I: The Musician’s Hand: An Organ of Exquisite Finesse
An overview of the function of the hand and upper extremity, especially as it applies to accomplished musicians, with emphasis on understanding concepts rather than learning terminology.
Part II: The Physiology of Hand, Wrist and Forearm Pain in Professional Musicians
A discussion of why professional musicians must often deal with hand, wrist and forearm pain at various stages in their careers with the assertion that having a basic understanding of the underlying physiological processes will help them prevent and resolve these issues without medical intervention.
Part III: Common Pathologies of the Hand, Wrist and Forearm in High-Level Musicians
An overview of common pathological problems seen in the upper extremities of high-level musicians with emphasis on recognition and prevention, when possible, as well as advice on when to seek medical treatment and how to choose an appropriate provider.
Dr. Gordon continously updates the original paper, and welcomes comments and concerns from all musicians!
To see why this research is so important for you even if you don’t currently have pain, check out the following video, recorded during CPI 2023!
