Nicolas Vardiabasis, DO

Dr. Nicolas Vardiabasis is a board-certified, fellowship trained Orthopaedic Surgeon.  Growing up with an affinity for competitive sports and an extended family full of physicians, Dr. Vardiabasis felt a natural pull toward a career in sports medicine. His own experiences as a young soccer and basketball player in southern California sparked his initial research interests and orthopedic work with athletes during his undergraduate years in sports medicine at Pepperdine University. Later, during a fellowship at Pittsburgh’s Allegheny General Hospital, Dr. Vardiabasis provided orthopedic care for professional athletes in Major League Baseball, the United Soccer League, and the USA Rugby team at the World Cup. Dr. Vardiabasis specializes in sports medicine, arthroscopy for shoulder, hips and, knees, as well as shoulder replacement, and cartilage repair and preservation.

While his medical degree is in osteopathic medicine, he sees that as just one part of a larger, more holistic approach to patient care. “When helping a patient, I’m not seeing only that one joint. That’s tunnel vision. Instead, I’m approaching the whole person, so I can come up with the best treatment.” Dr. Vardiabasis uses a model of shared decision-making, or “letting the patient be captain of the ship.” He shares information with patients and supports them as they consider and express their preferences and views throughout the decision-making process. His goal is to find common ground, present all his knowledge in an easy, direct and thorough way, while presenting plenty of opportunities for patients to to ask questions and express concerns. Dr. Vardiabasis’ patients have found him caring, empathetic, a good listener, and always current on the latest medical approaches. He enjoys building a relationship with his patients—getting to know them, their interests, hobbies, background and goals—and spending extra time with them to address both their surgical and nonsurgical needs. “Helping a patient, I’m not seeing only that one joint. Instead, I’m approaching the whole person, so I can come up with the best treatment.”