Matej Drobnič, MD PhD
Assistant Professor of Orthopedic Surgery
University Medical Centre Ljubljana, Slovenia, EU
Dr. Matej Drobnič is an Assistant Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at the Medical Faculty, University of Ljubljana and a Consultant Orthopedic Surgeon at the Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Dr. Drobnič earned his medical degree at the University of Ljubljana in 1999, and completed EU certified training in orthopedic surgery in 2007. He subspecializes in arthroscopy, sports traumatology, and reconstructive surgery of the knee and foot/ankle. In 2010, he was nominated as an assistant professor for orthopedic surgery at the Medical Faculty, University of Ljubljana. The same year he became head of the Rehabilitation unit within the Department of Orthopedic Surgery. He served as a visiting consultant and a guest teacher at the Department of Trauma and Orthopaedics, Barts and The London NHS, U K in 2012.
Besides clinical and teaching obligations, he is dedicated to research and novel applications of cartilage repair and tissue engineering. Through this involvement he has completed his MSc degree (2003) and PhD Thesis (2006) on the outcomes and surgical techniques of autologous chondrocyte implantation at the University of Ljubljana. He has been enrolled in 12 national and 3 international research projects. His academic activity resulted in over 120 publications and more than 50 lectures. He is an active member of national (former secretary of the Slovenian Orthopedic Association, and board member of Slovenian Cell and Tissue Engineering Society) and international (ICRS, ESSKA) orthopedic societies. He has been active in the editorial board of the American Journal of Sports Medicine since 2011. He is one of the founders and editors of a national sport medicine journal, Medicina in Šport.
Dr Drobnič was a national-level basketball player during his high school and university years. His dedication to sports echoes in his professional orthopedic career. He has been a team physician for the football teams NK Interblock (2010-12) and lately for NK Olimpija, Ljubljana. He is a Medical Commission member of the Slovenian Olympic Committee.
Matej and his wife Maja enjoy living in Ljubljana, Slovenia with their daughter Pika and son Timotej.
Selected Published Works
Ravnihar K, Barlič A, Drobnič M. Effect of intra-articular local anesthesia on articular cartilage in the knee. Arthroscopy. 2014;30(5):607-612.
Alibegović A, Balažic J, Petrovič D, Hribar G, Blagus R, Drobnič M. Viability of human articular chondrocytes harvested postmortem: changes with time and temperature of in vitro culture conditions. J Forensic Sci. 2014;59(2):522-528.
Filardo G, Drobnič M, Perdisa F, Kon E, Hribernik M, Marcacci M. Fibrin glue improves osteochondral scaffold fixation: study on the human cadaveric knee exposed to continuous passive motion. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2014;22(4):557-565.
Martinčič D, Radosavljevič D, Drobnič M. Ten-year clinical and radiographic outcomes after autologous chondrocyte implantation of femoral condyles. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2014;22(6):1277-1283.
Alibegovič A, Balažic J, Petrovič D, Velikonja NK, Blagus R, Suput D, Drobnič M. The optimal combination of cartilage source and apparatus for long-term in vitro chondrocyte viability analysis. J Forensic Sci. 2012;57(6):1601-1607.
Heijink A, Gomoll AH, Madry H, Drobnič M, Filardo G, Espregueira-Mendes J, Van Dijk CN. Biomechanical considerations in the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis of the knee. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2012;20(3):423-435.
Kon E, Filardo G, Drobnič M, Madry H, Jelic M, van Dijk N, Della Villa S. Non-surgical management of early knee osteoarthritis. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2012;20(3):436-449.
Malicev E, Barlič A, Kregar-Velikonja N, Stražar K, Drobnič M. Cartilage from the edge of a debrided articular defect is inferior to that from a standard donor site when used for autologous chondrocyte cultivation. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 2011;93(3):421-426.
Drobnič M, Radosavljevič D, Cör A, Brittberg M, Stražar K. Debridement of cartilage lesions before autologous chondrocyte implantation by open or transarthroscopic techniques: a comparative study using post-mortem materials. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 2010;92(4):602-608.
Maličev E, Kregar-Velikonja N, Barlič A, Alibegović A, Drobnič M. Comparison of articular and auricular cartilage as a cell source for the autologous chondrocyte implantation. J Orthop Res. 2009;27(7):943-948.
Barlič A, Drobnič M, Maličev E, Kregar-Velikonja N. Quantitative analysis of gene expression in human articular chondrocytes assigned for autologous implantation. J Orthop Res. 2008;26(6):847-853.
American Journal of Sports Medicine Editorial Board Spotlight 