Scientific Advisory Board

Dr. Cole is a Professor in the Department of Orthopedics with a conjoint appointment in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois. He is the Section Head of the Cartilage Research Program at Rush University Medical Center and the Cartilage Restoration Center at Rush, a multidisciplinary program specializing in the restoration of articular cartilage and meniscal deficiency. He also serves as the head of the Orthopedic Master’s Program and trains residents and fellows in sports medicine.
Dr. Cole received his MD and MBA from the University of Chicago in 1990, completed his residency at The Hospital for Special Surgery in New York in 1996, and his Sports Medicine Fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh in 1997. He specializes in arthroscopic shoulder, elbow and knee surgery. He has a specific interest in arthroscopic reconstruction of athlete’s shoulder (rotator cuff, instability and arthritis), elbow and knee. He is the principal investigator for numerous FDA clinical trials and regularly performs basic science research.
He has authored and edited several hundred peer-reviewed publications, including highly recognized orthopedic textbooks on arthroscopy, sports medicine and cartilage transplantation. His publications also include nearly one thousand book chapters, technique papers, and presentations describing the techniques and results of shoulder, elbow and knee surgery. Dr. Cole lectures and teaches the techniques of cartilage restoration and shoulder arthroscopy on a national and international level. Dr. Cole is a member of numerous national societies and serves on the Board of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons and assumes many high level positions on society organizing committees. Dr. Cole was chosen as one of the “Best Doctors in America” each year since 2004 and as a “Top Doctor” in the Chicago Metro area each year since 2003. In 2006, he was featured as “Chicago’s Top Doctor” and placed on the cover of Chicago Magazine. Dr. Cole is the team physician for the Chicago Bulls NBA Basketball team, co-team physician for the Chicago White Sox Major League Baseball team and DePaul University in Chicago.

Dr. Buddy Ratner is a recognized leader in the area of biomaterial coating technologies and a pioneer of coating technology design and development. Dr. Ratner is a Professor of Bioengineering and Chemical Engineering and the Director of the world renown University of Washington Engineered Biomaterials (UWEB) National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center. Dr. Ratner directs a major research program focusing on revolutionizing the way biomaterials heal in medical implant applications. Dr. Ratner has edited or co-edited several books, authored more than 250 papers, 30 book chapters, and several patents and has served as the President of both the Society for Biomaterials and the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering and is the recipient of numerous awards in his field.