Arthrodesis and Long Bone Fracture Repair

Dr. Barker returned to the Newmarket Equine Hospital on completion of his surgical residency to join the referrals team and specialize in equine surgery. In February 2014 he successfully passed the qualifying examinations of the European College of Veterinary Surgeons, becoming a Diplomate of the college and gaining recognition as a European Specialist in Equine Surgery. He has published several papers in peer reviewed scientific journals and presented both nationally and internationally, on subjects including soft tissue injuries to the tarsocrural joint, sinus surgery and fracture repair.

Dr. García-López obtained his VMD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1996 and went on to complete a one-year equine internship at Mid-Atlantic Equine Medical Center (Ringoes, New Jersey, USA) followed by a three-year Large Animal Surgical Residency with special focus on Equine Sports Medicine at Tufts University in North Grafton, Massachusetts. He became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2001 and by the American College of Veterinary Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation in 2013. Following his residency he obtained a lecturer position in the Section of Equine Sports Medicine and Imaging at the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania where he remained for 2 years. From 2002 through 2022, he returned to Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine as an Assistant then Associate Professor in Large Animal Surgery, where he helped developed the Equine Sports Medicine and Surgery Service of which he served as its director from 2014–2022. While at Tufts, he focused his work on the diagnosis and management of musculoskeletal disorders as well as the use of advanced imaging in the equine athlete. In 2022, he returned to the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center where he is currently a Clinical Associate Professor of Large Animal Surgery, with a focus on equine orthopedics including arthroscopy and fracture repair, lameness diagnosis and treatment, and advanced imaging. Dr. García-López is also a faculty member of AO VET North America (AO VET NA), of which he served as Chair from 2021–2024. He regularly lectures and provides consultations at the national and international level.

Dr. Ortved is an Associated Professor of Large Animal Surgery at New Bolton Center, the University of Pennsylvania, in Kennett Square, PA. She received her DVM degree from the University of Guelph in 2006 and completed her large animal surgery residency at Cornell University in 2010. She became a Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2011. Following her residency, she obtained a PhD in equine cartilage repair in June 2014 at Cornell University and joined the faculty at Cornell Ruffian Equine Specialists in July 2015, where she has been an active equine surgeon. In January 2016, Dr. Ortved became board-certified by the American College of Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation. She joined the faculty at New Bolton Center in February 2016 as a large animal orthopedic surgeon. She brings her research program in orthopedic disease to New Bolton Center, where she will continue to pursue gene and cell therapies for improving cartilage repair and preventing osteoarthritis.

Dr. Laura Riggs is an associate professor and the service chief of equine surgery in the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences at Louisiana State University. She is a 2001 graduate of the University of Tennessee, College of Veterinary Medicine. Following graduation, she completed a large animal rotating internship and surgery residency at the University Of Georgia College Of Veterinary Medicine. In 2007, she became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons. The same year she completed a PhD in veterinary physiology at the University of Georgia. In 2016, she became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation. Since 2008 Dr. Riggs has been a member of the clinical faculty in the Veterinary Teaching Hospital at Louisiana State University where she is actively involved with clinical, teaching and research activities in the Equine Health and Sports Performance program.