PD Dr. med. Dariusch Arbab

The Department of Orthopedics and Trauma Surgery at St. Elisabeth Hospital in Herten has earned an international reputation over the past two decades. Today, patients from around the world come to the Ruhr area for treatment – because here, state-of-the-art facilities meet outstanding expertise, reinforced by extensive experience and knowledge of developments in all fields of orthopedics. The department is led by a true specialist in high-performance orthopedics who has dedicated his career to the foot and ankle: PD Dr. med. Dariusch Arbab.

When the management of St. Elisabeth Hospital in Herten began searching for a new head of the Department of Orthopedics and Trauma Surgery in 2022, he was their preferred candidate from the outset: with PD Dr. med. Dariusch Arbab, they secured a distinguished expert who shares several qualities with his predecessor, Prof. Dr. med. Ralf Hermann Wittenberg. PD Dr. Arbab brings the same passion for all areas of orthopedics, is always striving for improvements – and puts patient well-being above all else.

For the people of the region, one thing is clear: this traditional hospital is considered the first address for healthcare. Its history spans nearly 120 years – and from the very beginning, its mission has been to provide the highest level of medical care in Herten, Westphalia. As early as 1926, an orthopedic department was established, which today treats around 7,500 patients per year on an outpatient basis, in addition to nearly 2,500 surgeries.

High specialization including sports medicine and manual medicine

Like his predecessor, PD Dr. med. Dariusch Arbab also possesses an exceptionally broad skill set, even for a highly specialized orthopedic surgeon: as a board-certified orthopedic and trauma surgeon, he holds additional qualifications in Specialized Orthopedic Surgery, Sports Medicine, and Emergency Medicine – as well as Manual Medicine, where he often restores mobility to restricted joints with just a few targeted maneuvers. In addition, he was awarded the “Foot Surgery Certificate” by the German Association for Foot and Ankle Surgery (DAF), which also recognized him as a trainer.

It is therefore clear where PD Dr. Arbab’s true medical passion lies – the foot. Most recently, he served as Head of the Foot and Ankle Surgery Section at the Orthopedic Clinic of Klinikum Dortmund, where his therapeutic successes as well as his innovative surgical techniques earned him international recognition.

Head of the Foot and Ankle Surgery Section

His main areas of expertise include reconstructive procedures of the forefoot and hindfoot, advanced cartilage repair techniques, and the sophisticated art of minimally invasive procedures on the highly complex structure that is the foot – with its tarsal bones, metatarsal bones, phalanges, and the many joints, muscles, and ligaments. He has also studied in depth the role of the feet and ankle in human development – making him a specialist in pediatric foot deformities.

Certification: clear guidance for patients

Here, patients receive the highest level of certified quality in treatment – particularly for all types of prostheses. To make this immediately visible, the German Society for Orthopedics and Orthopedic Surgery (DGOOC) developed an especially rigorous certification. The department at St. Elisabeth Hospital Herten was awarded certification as an Endoprosthetics Center by the ClarCert certification body – and has been recertified multiple times. The result: around 1,600 endoprostheses are implanted in Herten each year – an impressive figure that reflects both the team’s vast experience and the surgeons’ expertise. Naturally, this also means high case volumes – and extremely low infection rates, far below the national average.

Another reason also spoke in favor of Herten: PD Dr. Arbab is returning to the region he comes from. Born in nearby Recklinghausen, the widely traveled specialist knows the people of the Ruhr area well. He studied in Cologne, Madrid, and Zurich, and additionally obtained the U.S. medical licensing examination. His practical training and numerous fellowships took him to many places – including university hospitals in Zurich and Aachen, MedStar Clinic in Baltimore, Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Harvard Medical School, and the renowned Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York City. Throughout this journey, he increasingly focused on quality assurance in orthopedics and, in particular, foot surgery.

With PD Dr. med. Dariusch Arbab, St. Elisabeth Hospital thus has an orthopedic surgeon with extensive knowledge in all relevant fields who is nonetheless recognized as a leading specialist in foot and ankle disorders – in both adults and children. His broad medical expertise combined with his high degree of specialization make him a forward-looking representative of modern medical development. And this is clearly reflected in his many awards and distinctions.