Dr. Chad Gordon is a distinguished figure in the field of medicine, renowned for his pioneering work in neuroplastic and reconstructive surgery. His expertise spans a range of complex procedures, including cranioplasty, facial transplantation, and the development of customized cranial implants. Currently, Dr. Gordon serves as the Section Chief of Neuroplastic and Reconstructive Surgery and Fellowship Program Director at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
Education and Training
Dr. Gordon earned his doctor of osteopathic medicine degree from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. He completed a residency in plastic-reconstructive surgery at the Cleveland Clinic and a fellowship in adult craniomaxillofacial surgery at Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital.
Academic and Professional Appointments
- Professor of Plastic-Reconstructive Surgery and Neurological Surgery at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
- Principal Investigator of the Neuroplastic Surgery Laboratory at Johns Hopkins.
- Chair of the Annual Harvard-Hopkins Neuroplastic Surgery Symposium.
- Inaugural President for the Society of Neuroplastic Surgery.
- Co-director of the Multidisciplinary Adult Cranioplasty Center with Dr. Judy Huang in the Department of Neurosurgery.
Clinical Expertise
With advanced training in adult craniomaxillofacial surgery, Dr. Gordon's clinical expertise includes neuroplastic surgery, which encompasses reconstructive surgery in the craniofacial, skull, and scalp regions. Over the last nine years, he has developed this new subspecialty with strong collaboration alongside Neurosurgery. His main concentration involves optimizing reconstructive outcomes for adult neurosurgical patients including brain/skull tumor, head trauma, epilepsy, hydrocephalus, and neurofibromatosis.
Contributions to Facial Transplantation
During his residency at the Cleveland Clinic, Dr. Gordon was involved in the country's first face transplant in December 2008 as a team surgeon and project coordinator. For his work related to the nation’s first face transplant, the Cleveland Clinic presented Dr. Gordon the Bruce Hubbard Stewart Memorial Award for Humanistic Medicine.
Pioneering Neuroplastic Surgery
Dr. Chad Gordon is the pioneer behind the emerging field known as "Neuroplastic and Reconstructive Surgery". As an internationally recognized expert in cranioplasty reconstruction and custom skull implants.
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Innovations in Cranial Implants
Dr. Gordon has performed several "first-in-human" surgeries with state-of-the-art cranial implants and holds numerous patents for patient-specific craniofacial implants and computer-assisted/robot-assisted technologies. Throughout his tenure, he developed a portfolio of 21 patents and 3 First-in-Human studies evaluating state-of-the-art cranial implants.
Cranioplasty and Reconstruction
Dr. Gordon serves as the co-director of the Multidisciplinary Adult Cranioplasty Center with Dr. Judy Huang in the Department of Neurosurgery. He is responsible for coordinating complex craniofacial reconstructions alongside a large group of dedicated neurosurgeons and multidisciplinary specialists at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.
Cranial reconstruction, commonly referred to as cranioplasty, aims to restore cerebral protection, correct visual disfigurement from an acquired/congenital craniofacial deformity, and reverse "syndrome of the trephined." Despite advances, overall complication rates remain significant, ranging from approximately 15 to 43 percent.
Cranioplasty is critical to cerebral protection and restoring intracranial physiology, yet this procedure is fraught with a high risk of complications. The field of neuroplastic surgery was created to improve skull and scalp reconstruction outcomes in adult neurosurgical patients, with the hypothesis that a multidisciplinary team approach could help decrease complications.
Cranioplasty Illustration
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One study reviewed 500 consecutive adult neuroplastic surgery cranioplasties that were performed between January 2012 and September 2020. Overall, there was a reoperation rate of 15.2% (n = 76), with the most frequent complications being infection (7.8%, n = 39), epidural hematoma (2.2%, n = 11), and wound dehiscence (1.8%, n = 9). Several variables were associated with increased odds of revision surgery, including lower body mass ratio, 2 or more cranial surgeries, presence of hydrocephalus shunts, scalp tissue defects, large-sized skull defect, and autologous bone flaps. Importantly, implants with embedded neurotechnology were not associated with increased odds of reoperation. These results allow for comparison of multiple factors that impact risk of complications after cranioplasty and lay the foundation for development of a cranioplasty risk stratification scheme.
Research Interests
Dr. Gordon's main research interests include neuroplastic surgery, adult craniofacial surgery, cranioplasty, and customized cranial implants.
The team seeks the holy grail of transplantation, a discovery that could transform the lives of solid organ transplant recipients as well as reconstructive ones: complete immune tolerance, in which patients would require no immunosuppressive medication at all.
Because these transplants are not lifesaving, the team is intensively focused on reducing or eliminating immunosuppressive medication. Simply put, it's important that a given procedure improve the life of a patient to a greater degree than it causes a negative impact.
The field of reconstructive transplantation is so new that many questions remain. Johns Hopkins team. "It's the same excitement, I think, that was there 50 years ago when the first kidney and liver transplants were performed," Brandacher says. "Seeing that we can restore patients with missing limbs and missing faces. And I think we are on the brink of seeing major differences in how we treat transplant recipients in general, being on the verge of achieving immune tolerance. These types of transplants might help to reach this goal." If early successes in large animal models are any indication, that goal feels tantalizingly within reach.
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Editorial Roles and Contributions
In 2015, Dr. Gordon became an Associate Editor for the prestigious Journal of Craniofacial Surgery, serving under Editor-in-Chief Mutaz Habal, M.D. This journal is recognized as the leading international journal for the specialty of craniofacial surgery, and is now the official journal of the Society of Neuroplastic Surgery, for which Dr. Gordon serves as President. In addition, Dr. Gordon serves as an associate editor for the Annals of Plastic Surgery.
Table: Factors Associated with Increased Odds of Revision Surgery in Cranioplasty
| Factor | Description |
|---|---|
| Lower body mass ratio | Patients with a lower body mass ratio had increased odds of revision surgery. |
| 2 or more cranial surgeries | Patients who had undergone two or more cranial surgeries had increased odds of revision surgery. |
| Presence of hydrocephalus shunts | Patients with hydrocephalus shunts had increased odds of revision surgery. |
| Scalp tissue defects | Patients with scalp tissue defects had increased odds of revision surgery. |
| Large-sized skull defect | Patients with large-sized skull defects had increased odds of revision surgery. |
| Autologous bone flaps | Patients with autologous bone flaps had increased odds of revision surgery. |
Dr. Gordon is responsible for coordinating complex craniofacial reconstructions alongside a large group of dedicated neurosurgeons and multidisciplinary specialists at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.
He is a pioneer in the emerging field known as "Neuroplastic and Reconstructive Surgery". He serves as Section Chief of Neuroplastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Director for the Johns Hopkins Neuroplastic and Reconstructive Surgery fellowship, Professor of Plastic-Reconstructive Surgery and Neurological Surgery at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and Principal Investigator of the Neuroplastic Surgery Laboratory at Johns Hopkins.
Cranioplasty technique by Chad Gordon DO, FACS
Dr. Gordon's work continues to shape the future of reconstructive surgery, offering hope and improved quality of life for patients facing complex craniofacial challenges.
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