Munjed Al Muderis

Munjed Al Muderis (born 1972) is an Australian Associate Professor in orthopaedic surgery. His pioneering work on prosthetics and patents on titanium devices that he designed places Australia at the forefront of osseointegration technology.^[2]

Early life

Munjed Al Muderis was born under the regime of Saddam Hussein.^[3] His father was a former Supreme Court judge and had authority in the Marine Corps, while his uncle was a descendant of the second royal family and Prime Minister, back when Iraq was still a kingdom.^[4]

He graduated from Baghdad College High School in 1991 and studied medicine at Baghdad University from 1991 to 1997, graduating with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery.^[5] He was forced to flee Iraq when he was working as a junior surgeon at Saddam Hussein Medical Centre in Baghdad.^[1]

In 1999, many army draft evaders were brought into the hospital for the top of their ears to be amputated, under Saddam Hussein's orders. The senior surgeon in the operating theatre refused the orders and was immediately interrogated before being shot in front of several medical staff. Al Muderis did not comply to the orders.^[6]

He escaped the operating theatre and hid in the female toilets for five hours. He then fled to Jordan before the authorities caught up with him and moved on to Kuala Lumpur . From there, he took a people-smuggling route to Christmas Island where he was sent to Curtin Detention Centre. He was dehumanised there and addressed by his assigned number, 982. He was punished with solitary confinement and was repeatedly told to go back where he came from. In 2000, 10 months after being sent to Curtin Detention Centre, he was granted refugee status and was freed.^[2]

Upon release, he only landed a job at Mildura Base Hospital as an Emergency Unit and Orthopaedic Resident after sending out more than 100 resumes. A year later, he moved to the Austin Hospital in Melbourne and travelled to many different countries, completing specialisation fellowships and attending short-term courses.^[1]

Osseointegration

Women's weekly and NEWS rank Dr Al Muderis as one of the world's top osseointegration surgeons.^[7][8] The Osseointegration Group of Australia Team (OGAP) is made up of specialists in various fields. Dr Al Muderis developed the new generation of implant, OPL Osseointegration Prosthetic Limb that addresses several issues faced by the patients previously.^[9]

Traditional and rigid socket based technology is now replaced with a surgery that inserts a titanium implant into the bone. Osseoperception occurs as the prosthetic is anchored directly to the bone which would transmit sensory signals, resulting in patients recovering certain level of feeling. The implant surface is also made of highly porous titanium, providing the user with balance and allowing for ingrowth of bone. A dual adaptor is designed with a smooth surface to minimise friction and coated with titanium niobium for antibacterial purposes. The adaptor is fixed to control device and is connected to the external of the prosthetic limb. Putting on and taking off the prosthetic limb requires less than ten seconds.^[9] Osseointegration surgery aims to provide amputees with greater mobility and reduced discomfort.^[10]

Career

Dr Al Muderis was a first year resident^[1] at Saddam Hussein Medical Centre^[3] in Baghdad before fled Iraq and his career got disrupted. In Australia, he first worked at Mildura Base Hospital as Emergency Unit and Orthopaedic Resident.^[1] He then moved to Melbourne four months later and worked at Austin Repatriation Hospital as a Surgical Registrar, followed by a year at Canberra Hospital.^[1]

In 2004, he joined the Australian Orthopaedic Training Program and in 2008, he attained his surgical fellowship, FRACS (Orth).^[11] He completed the following post specialisation fellowships:

• Fellowship in Lower Limb Arthroplasty with Dr Ali Gursel at Sydney Adventist and Baulkham Hills Hospital, Australia.^[5]
• Fellowship in Hip and Knee Arthroplasty with Prof.Dr.Med Jorg Scholz at the Emil Von Behring Hospital, Germany.^[5]
• Trauma Fellowship with Prof.Dr.Med.Axel Ekkernkamp at the Unfallkrankenhaus Berlin, Germany^[5]
• Robotic leg surgery post-specialisation training with Dr Horst Aschoff at Lubeck, Germany^[5]

Dr Muderis is a supervisor of the Australian Orthopaedic Trainee Registrar at the above mentioned medical centres and is a supervisor of overseas trained orthopaedic surgeons (Fellows) in Hip and Knee pathology.^[5]

In 2010, Dr Al Muderis commenced his private practice.^[1] He is an orthopaedic surgeon and treats his patients at Macquarie University, Bella Vista, Drummoyne and Sydney Adventist Hospital clinics.^[1] He is also appointed as an Adjunct Clinical Associate Professor in the School of Medicine, Sydney Campus at the University of Notre Dame Australia^[5] and a Clinical Lecturer at Macquarie University Hospital and The Australian School of Advanced Medicine.^[1] He also has appointments at The Sydney Adventist Hospital and Norwest Private Hospital.^[1] He is a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and the Australian Orthopaedic Association.^[5] He is also the founder of the Osseointegration Group of Australia.^[5] As an Australian orthopaedic surgeon, he specialises in hip, knee, trauma and osseointegration surgery,^[1] focusing in hip arthroscopy, resurfacing, arthroplasty, knee arthroplasty and reconstruction of recurrent patellar dislocations.^[1] Dr Al Muderis chaired the 2015 Osseointegration Conference^[12] and was a guest speaker at Australian Orthotic Prosthetist Association Meeting.^[13]

Dr Al Muderis has presented and published numerous research reports on how to measure growth rate in children, limited incison plating technique in management of clavicle fracure and describing new patterns of distal clavicle fractures dislocation.^[14]

He has written a book about his life and experiences in 2014, called "Walking Free", published by Allen and Unwin.^[1]

Successful surgeries

Australian swimmer Brendan Burkett, 2000 Australian Paralympic Team athlete

Dr Al Muderis clinics at Norwest Private Hospital, Macquarie University and Sydney Adventist Hospital in Sydney are known worldwide as centres of excellence, according to NEWS.^[15] His achievement and development of the Osseointegration Prosthetic Limb was celebrated by people in Australia and abroad. Dr Al Muderis has treated several Paralympian, cancer patients and traumatic amputees. Dr Al Muderis conducted his first American implant surgery on Fred Hernandez in April 2013.^[16]

Brendan Burkett is an Australian swimmer who was involved in a traffic motorbike accident, disrupting his career as a professional athlete. In 2011, he had a successful Osseointegration surgery at Macquarie University Hospital performed by Dr Al Muderis.^[17]

Kerrod McGregor, Barcelona 1992 Paralympics

In 2012, an Australian Paralympic athlete, Kerrod McGregor, underwent a successful Osseointegration surgery performed by Dr Al Muderis. Kerrod is Australia's 23rd patient that has undergone the Osseointegration Implant surgery.^[18]

In April 2012, Dr Al Muderis headed the operation to fit the artificial limb on Marny Cringle, 42. Marny Cringle underwent the operation at Macquarie University Hospital in Sydney. She is the first person in the world to fit a bionic limb after lengthening her bone by two inches as the remaining stump after her amputation was too short and the prosthetic limb could not be fitted on her. Her successful surgery sets a precedence for possible achievements in the case of thousands other amputees.^[19]

In 2013 Dr Al Muderis met Michael Swain, a former British soldier in his Sydney clinic. Michael Swain is a British rifleman who joined the British Army at the age of 16 and was posted to 3 Rifles in Edinburgh after a year and a half of training. Michael Swain was 20 years old when he lost his leg in the Taliban Bomb Blast in Afghanistan that took place in November 2009.^[20] For 18 months, he tried learning how to walk with prosthetic legs but he was still relatively immobile. Sponsored by the Ministry of Defence, he was treated in Dr Al Muderis clinic in England with the Osseointegration procedure and is now able to walk. Swain and many other patients took the risk of complications to undergo the implant surgery to leave their socket prosthetic behind. In March 2014, Dr Al Muderis attended the ceremony at which Swain was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) upon invitation by the Queen of England.^[21]

Personal life

Munjed Al Muderis has two sons, Adam and Dean from a previous relationship.^[22] He is now married to Irina, a general practitioner. The couple have a daughter, Sophia and a dog, Mozart.^[23][24] Al Muderis is seen driving a Porsche, wear Italian designer clothes and lives in a waterfront home, overlooking the Sydney Harbour Bridge.^[22]

Books

"Walking free" was published in October 2014,^[1] written by Munjed Al Muderis and contributed by Patrick Weaver.^[25] It was published by Allen and Unwin.^[1] In his book, he shared his life and experience in Iraq under Saddam Hussein's regime, his journey to seek asylum in Australia and how he worked towards being a world leader in osseointegration surgery.^[26]

Media

Both newspaper publications and radio talk shows share the story of Munjed Al Muderis, from his journey of fleeing Iraq to his job as an osseointegration surgeon in Sydney, Australia.

Newspapers

• Sunday Morning Herald^[2]
• Dailymail^[27]

Radio

• ABC Classic FM^[28]
• 89.9Light FM (Melbourne)^[29]

References

External links

• "Munjed Al Muderis". Main Webpage. 
• "Specialist Details". Find a Specialist.