Robert M. Campbell Jr., MD, attending orthopedic surgeon at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and director and founder of CHOP’s Center for Thoracic Insufficiency Syndrome — the first national multidisciplinary program devoted solely to the treatment and research of this condition — has been nominated by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons for representation on the Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) Medical Advisory Committees’ Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Devices Panel.
The CDRH is charged with protecting and promoting public health by assuring that patients and providers have timely and continued access to safe, effective, and high-quality medical devices and safe radiation-emitting products. The Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Devices Panel advises the CDRH about issues related to the safety and effectiveness of orthopedic and rehabilitation devices, and facilitates medical device innovation.
Dr. Campbell’s knowledge, experience, and accomplishments in the area of orthopedic devices ensure he will admirably represent the best interests of the panel. He has more than 25 years of experience treating life-threatening pediatric thoracic diseases, has pioneered new surgical treatments for potentially lethal spine and chest wall deformities of infancy, and is the inventor of the device known as VEPTR (vertical expandable prosthetic titanium rib), which is used to treat rare diseases of the spine and chest wall without inhibiting children's growth.
Dr. Campbell has previously served as the principal investigator for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Multicenter National Device Trial for the VEPTR device from 1990-2004. He continues to pioneer new surgical techniques to treat thoracic insufficiency syndrome (TIS), and also is developing a new dynamic lung MRI thoracic performance assessment to objectively measure TIS surgical outcomes. He was recently honored by the FDA as one of the 30 individuals who have contributed most to the research and treatment of rare diseases in the United States in commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Orphan Drug Act Passage.