PROFILE
Messieh
Orthopedic
Clinic
Dr. Samuel S. Messieh is the “Bees’ Knees”
perform conventional posterior hip replacement
surgery, he favors anterior hip replacement, which
means he enters the hip from the front rather
than the back, thereby not splitting muscles but
rather maneuvering around them. This subtler,
sophisticated technique usually means significantly
less pain and much quicker recovery, with patients
up walking the very same day and dispensing with
walking appliances soon after. Dr. Messieh advocates
a quad-sparing approach to knee replacements
and he often utilizes this approach as opposed
to the traditional quad-splitting technique. He is
thus able to work under the quadriceps muscle,
again, expediting patient recovery and decreasing
discomfort.
“This is not a teaching center; the focus is completely
on the patient and the patient knows the surgeon.”
He explains: “I always consult with patients before
surgery. There are many considerations when
considering what surgical procedure—if any—is right.
Not everyone is a candidate for surgery or for the
procedure they initially think. I want to get the whole
picture. I want to understand the patient’s goals and
what they are trying to accomplish with surgery.
Choice and success—individualized counseling
and immediate improvement—these are the goals
Dr. Messieh and his team have for all their patients.
What’s the highest praise you can give an orthopedic
surgeon? That he is “the best of the best?” That you
have “full confidence in him?” But the most apt
patient description brings a chuckle because it is so
appropriate: “He’s the bees’ knees—pun intended.”
A term from the 1920s, “the bees’ knees” means the
ultimate, unsurpassed, acknowledged best.
Of course, it is comforting to hear positive testimonials
from patients, but actual metrics provide concrete
confirmation of subjective satisfaction. According to
www.surgeonscorecard.com, a popular patient safety
website that ranks the performance of surgeons
based on the percentage of complications in their
surgeries, Dr. Messieh is one of the foremost knee
replacement surgeons in Florida (with fewer than 1.3%
complications) and ranks similarly highly (with less
than 2.2% complications) among Florida surgeons
performing hip replacements. He is quite literally “the
best of the best” and “top notch.”
What has caused Dr. Messieh to
be so highly rated?
He would tell you first that advanced, cutting edge
techniques matter for results. For years, Dr. Messieh
has focused on providing the best equipment and
strategies in order to provide patients with optimal
outcomes. He has done this both in his own practice
and also for Winter Haven Hospital, in his capacity as
joint replacement director. Whereas most surgeons
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