About

Michael M. Vosbikian, MD, is an assistant professor of orthopedic surgery at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School (NJMS) and an orthopaedic surgeon at Rutgers North Jersey Orthopaedic Institute (NJOI). He specializes in hand, upper extremity, and microvascular surgery. Dr. Vosbikian holds positions as an attending physician at University Hospital in Newark, NJ, and Newark Beth Israel Medical Center. He serves as the assistant program director for the residency and the director of the core orthopaedic curriculum for Rutgers NJMS. His educational background includes an MD from UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School obtained in 2010, and a B.S. cum laude from Villanova University in 2004. He completed his orthopaedic surgery residency at Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals and his hand and microvascular surgery residency at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School. Dr. Vosbikian is board certified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery in both surgery of the hand and orthopaedic surgery.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Surgery
• Political Science
• Computer Science
• Medical emergency
• Medical education
• Pathology
• World Wide Web
• Economics
• Internal medicine
• Library science
• Physical therapy
• Family medicine
• Intensive care medicine

Selected publications

• Arthroscopy Versus Open Arthrotomy for Septic Arthritis of the Wrist: A Nationwide Inpatient Sample Analysis of 1,065 Cases

  Journal of Hand Surgery Global Online · 2025-12-04

  articleOpen access

  Purpose: Septic arthritis of the wrist is an uncommon condition, but one that can result in substantial morbidity. Limited data exist on the inpatient outcomes of septic arthritis of the wrist among patients treated using arthroscopy versus open arthrotomy. The purpose of our study was to compare the reoperation rates and inpatient complications between these two procedures. Methods: - test. Results: A total of 1,065 patients with septic arthritis of the wrist were treated either arthroscopically (n = 516) or by open arthrotomy (n = 549). Patients who were treated arthroscopically had higher reoperation rates (48.6% vs 8.7%). Using multivariate analysis, patients who were treated arthroscopically were more likely to undergo repeat arthroscopic procedures (odds radio [OR], 10.4; 95% CI,7.0-15.3), although they were not different in terms of the risk of development of medical (OR, 1.20; 95% CI, 0.80-1.80) or surgical (OR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.65-1.16) complications. Arthroscopy and arthrotomy also did not differ in terms of length of stay (6.29 ± 5.0 vs 6.26 ± 4.5) and inpatient hospital charges (33,563.4 ± 30,296.3 vs 34,422.6 ± 31,362.0). Conclusions: Orthopedic surgeons should be aware of the increased rate of reoperation when managing patients with septic arthritis of the wrist arthroscopically and should discuss this potential risk with surgical candidates. Type of study/level of evidence: Prognostic III.

  PublisherDOI

• Radiographic outcomes of dorsal spanning plate with and without volar plate fixation for comminuted intraarticular distal radius fractures

  Journal of Clinical Orthopaedics and Trauma · 2025-02-16 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  Purpose: Dorsal spanning plate fixation for comminuted intra-articular distal radius fractures involves indirect reduction via ligamentotaxis, potentially resulting in suboptimal restoration of native anatomy. Displaced volar fragments may necessitate separate buttress support with a volar plate. This objective of this study was to retrospectively compare radiographic outcomes between distal radius fractures managed with dorsal spanning plate fixation alone versus dorsal spanning plate fixation with concomitant volar plating. Methods: A retrospective review identified 51 distal radius fracture cases treated with dorsal spanning plate fixation, with 35 receiving isolated dorsal spanning plate fixation and 16 receiving dorsal spanning plate fixation with a concomitant volar plate. Radiographic parameters were measured at plate application and removal. Results: Final radiographs for isolated dorsal spanning plate fixation vs. dorsal spanning and volar plate fixation showed similar outcomes: radial height (9.3 mm vs. 8.9 mm, p = 0.8), ulnar variance (-2.77 mm vs. -2.47 mm, p = 0.76), radial inclination (18.8° vs. 16.3°, p = 0.21), volar tilt (1.3° vs. 2.8°, p = 0.45), and teardrop angle (48.9° vs. 51.0°, p = 0.32). Little to no loss of radiographic alignment was observed between time points. Conclusions: Radiographic outcomes for distal radius fractures treated with dorsal spanning plate fixation alone versus dorsal spanning plate and volar plate fixation are comparable, with suboptimal restoration of volar tilt and teardrop angle. Level of evidence: Therapeutic IV.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Utility of ChatGPT as a preparation tool for the Orthopaedic In‐Training Examination

  Journal of Experimental Orthopaedics · 2025-01-01 · 3 citations

  articleOpen access

  Abstract Purpose Chat Generative Pre‐Trained Transformer (ChatGPT) may have implications as a novel educational resource. There are differences in opinion on the best resource for the Orthopaedic In‐Training Exam (OITE) as information changes from year to year. This study assesses ChatGPT's performance on the OITE for use as a potential study resource for residents. Methods Questions for the OITE data set were sourced from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) website. All questions from the 2022 OITE were included. All questions, including those with images, were included in the analysis. The questions were formatted in the same manner as presented on the AAOS website, with the question, narrative text and answer choices separated by a line. Each question was evaluated in a new chat session to minimize confounding variables. Answers from ChatGPT were characterized by whether they contained logical, internal or external information. Incorrect responses were further categorized into logical, informational or explicit fallacies. Results ChatGPT yielded an overall success rate of 48.3% based on the 2022 AAOS OITE. ChatGPT demonstrated the ability to apply logic and stepwise thinking in 67.6% of the questions. ChatGPT effectively utilized internal information from the question stem in 68.1% of the questions. ChatGPT also demonstrated the ability to incorporate external information in 68.1% of the questions. The utilization of logical reasoning ( p < 0.001), internal information ( p = 0.004) and external information (p = 0.009) was greater among correct responses than incorrect responses. Informational fallacy was the most common shortcoming of ChatGPT's responses. There was no difference in correct responses based on whether or not an image was present ( p = 0.320). Conclusions ChatGPT demonstrates logical, informational and explicit fallacies which, at this time, may lead to misinformation and hinder resident education. Level of Evidence Level V.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Evaluation of the Proximal Radio-Ulnar Joint Anatomy as a Marker for Radial Head Arthroplasty

  SurgiColl · 2025-06-22

  articleOpen access

  Objectives Implant sizing is a challenging step in radial head arthroplasty. Improper selection can “overstuff” the elbow joint and lead to degenerative changes. Prior investigation with computed tomography demonstrated a consistent relationship between the radial head and coronoid, which can guide implant sizing. We hypothesize that conventional radiography can similarly define the radioulnar variance at the proximal radioulnar joint (PRUJ) and serve as a landmark for radial head replacement. Methods Patients with elbow radiographs were eligible for the study. Patients who had trauma from the humeral shaft to the distal radius were excluded. Anteroposterior projections were performed in full extension and supination. One orthopaedic hand specialist, one senior resident, and one junior resident assessed the radiographs for coronoid to radial head height, defined as the distance from the equator of the radial head projection to the top of the coronoid projection. Results Fifty elbow radiographs were consecutively selected for radiographic study. There were 37 (74%) males and 13 (26%) females, with a mean age of 40. The average coronoid-radial head distance was 2.2mm (SD 1.5mm), ranging from -2.6 to 5.2mm. Interobserver reliability was 0.95. Conclusions Our data shows that the radiographic anatomy of the PRUJ shows a consistent relationship between the coronoid and radial head. This measurement is reliably reproducible and may be used as a marker of radial head placement and sizing in radial head arthroplasty, reducing cost and radiation exposure. This study presents an alternative reference point to measure radial head variance to assess for overstuffing during radial head arthroplasty.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• How Easy Is It to Get a Grip on Hand Pathologies? A Comparative Analysis of ChatGPT Against AAOS, AAHS, and ASSH Patient Information Sheets

  SurgiColl · 2025-12-22

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Objectives Chat generative pre-trained transformer (ChatGPT) is a conversational artificial intelligence tool that can compose, analyze, and present information to its users. This comparative study aimed to explore whether ChatGPT can generate patient information sheets on common hand pathologies for the average US patient. The comprehensibility (dubbed “readability”) of ChatGPT was examined and compared to that of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), the American Association of Hand Surgery (AAHS), and the American Society for Surgery of the Hand (ASSH) patient information sheets. Methods Patient information sheets related to common hand pathologies were identified through the AAOS, AAHS, and ASSH websites. All entries used were pathologies limited to the hand and wrist. ChatGPT was utilized to generate patient information sheets on the same hand pathologies at the sixth-grade reading level. WebFx was utilized to calculate readability scores for the AAOS, AAHS, ASSH, and ChatGPT-generated patient sheets. Statistical analysis was determined using a paired two-tailed t-test. Statistical significance was defined as P < 0.05. Results Based on the results, patient information sheets from AAOS and ASSH are significantly easier to read on most metrics. Those from AAHS are no different from those generated from ChatGPT except for being easier to read per the Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease and Coleman-Liau Index. Information sheets generated by ChatGPT have a significantly smaller number of words and complex words compared to those from AAOS and ASSH. Conclusions Patients may find it easier to read patient information sheets from AAOS and ASSH compared to those generated by ChatGPT.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Combined semi-constrained total distal radioulnar joint (DRUJ) arthroplasty and radial head arthroplasty for severe, concomitant rheumatoid disease of the wrist and elbow joints

  Journal of Hand and Microsurgery · 2025-04-28

  reviewOpen access

  Semi-constrained total distal radioulnar joint (DRUJ) arthroplasty with Aptis-Scheker implant has demonstrated excellent results in patients with end-stage rheumatoid arthritis (RA) of the wrist. However, clinical success of the Scheker implant in restoring range of motion may be limited in patients with concomitant degenerative disease at the proximal radioulnar joint and radiocapitellar joint, which work in tandem with the DRUJ to allow pronosupination of the forearm. Among treatment options for elbow arthritis, standalone radial head arthroplasty remains poorly studied in the context of RA, despite being used widely in trauma patients. Here, we illustrate the surgical technique for combined total DRUJ arthroplasty with a Scheker implant and radial head arthroplasty to treat long-standing, refractory RA, at the wrist and elbow joints, with excellent results at 1-year follow-up.

  PublisherDOI

• Firearm violence and policy in the United States: A survey study on the perspectives of hand surgeons

  Journal of Clinical Orthopaedics and Trauma · 2025-04-24

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Ethical Considerations in the Interhospital Transfer of Patients

  The Journal Of Hand Surgery · 2025-12-06

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Comparative evaluation of LLMs in orthopedic surgery

  Journal of Orthopaedic Reports · 2025-07-15 · 4 citations

  articleOpen access

  This study aimed to evaluate the performance of leading large language models (LLMs) in orthopedic surgery, with a focus on diagnostic accuracy, radiographic interpretation, subspecialty-specific performance, consistency, and gender bias. Unlike previous investigations that focused solely on ChatGPT, we assessed Claude-3-Sonnet, GPT-4o, Gemini-1.5, and Meta’s LLaMA Vision-Instruct models against Orthopaedic In-Training Examination (OITE) questions. We tested each LLM on 2,906 multiple-choice questions from the OITE question bank. Questions were categorized by subspecialty and by presence of images. Models provided answer choices, confidence scores (1–4), and justifications. Each question was administered three times to evaluate consistency. Statistical analyses included Z-tests, t-tests, ANOVA, chi-square tests, and logistic regression. Rasch transformation enabled comparison to PGY-1 and PGY-5 resident performance. Gender bias was evaluated based on performance differences across gender-specific cases. GPT-4o achieved the highest accuracy (72.8%), outperforming all other models. Performance improved with larger model sizes across all vendors. All models showed diminished accuracy on image-based questions (mean 10.9% lower, p<0.001). Confidence scores and triplicate agreement were associated with accuracy; their combination yielded the most reliable outputs (up to 83.4% accuracy). Several models exhibited worse performance on female patient questions, indicating possible gender bias. LLMs demonstrate varying levels of accuracy in orthopaedic applications, with GPT-4o approaching PGY-5 performance, strictly in the context of standardized exam questions. Current models underperform on image-based questions and exhibit gender bias. Response confidence and consistency can flag reliable outputs. Continued development, bias mitigation, and fine-tuning with diverse, domain-specific datasets are essential for integration of LLMs into orthopaedic education and practice.

  PublisherDOI

• Fixation of the Volar Ulnar Corner in Distal Radius Fractures: A Comparative Study

  Hand · 2025-03-27

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes of distal radius fractures with a volar ulnar corner (VUC) component treated with standard volar plating or by specific VUC fixation. This study investigated outcomes, radiographic measures, and specialty-based preference associated with surgical treatment of VUC injuries using VUC-specific fixation versus nonspecific VUC fixation. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed outcomes for 39 patients with a distal radius fracture with VUC component at a level-1 trauma center over 10 years, 2011-2021. Patients underwent either VUC-specific fixation with implants such as a volar rim plate, or with a standard volar plate. The primary outcome of this study was fixation failure and need for revision. Secondary outcomes included complication rate, radiographic alignment, and differences in fixation based on fellowship training. RESULTS: Sixteen of the 39 patients studied had undergone VUC-specific fixation, with a significantly higher rate of use of VUC-specific fixation in fellowship trained hand surgeons compared with fellowship-trained trauma surgeons. There was no significant difference in loss of reduction, revision surgery, or complications. Radiographic measures were statistically similar between both groups postoperatively. Trauma trained surgeons had a significantly increased postoperative radial inclination versus hand-trained surgeons. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that not all VUC injuries require specific VUC fixation, and we may be overtreating distal radius fractures that have a VUC component. Fellowship-trained hand surgeons are more likely to employ VUC-specific fixation methods. Additional studies are warranted to determine whether other considerations such as dynamic testing intraoperatively are worthwhile.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Irfan Ahmed

  Rutgers New Jersey Medical School

  111 shared

• Dominick V. Congiusta

  Rutgers New Jersey Medical School

  67 shared

• Kamil M. Amer

  Rothman Institute

  39 shared

• Robert L DalCortivo

  Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

  35 shared

• Cory Lebowitz

  Rutgers New Jersey Medical School

  25 shared

• Asif M. Ilyas

  Thomas Jefferson University

  24 shared

• Pedro K. Beredjiklian

  22 shared

• Jeremy Hreha

  Lehigh Valley Hospital-Pocono

  21 shared

Education

• M.D.

  UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School

  2010

• B.S.

  Villanova University

  2004

Awards & honors

• Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society