Brian R. Waterman, MD

11/11/2025

This Veterans Day, we honor all who served and spotlight one extraordinary story.

Meet Ron, a Vietnam Veteran and Purple Heart recipient. In 1969, Ron was piloting a helicopter when it crashed in Vietnam. Two men onboard lost their lives. Ron survived, but with devastating injuries: 60% of his body was burned and his left arm was amputated.

Throughout the following decades, Ron underwent three shoulder surgeries from overuse of his right arm. In 2024, Ron needed a fourth surgery, a shoulder replaxement - finding a surgeon willing to operate a fourth time was a challenge until his daughter, Ronda, a nurse at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, introduced him to Dr. Brian Waterman, an orthopaedic surgeon and former Army surgeon.

“From the very beginning, I felt a level of comfort and confidence with Dr. Waterman,” Ron shared. “We share a brotherhood and I am very thankful for him. Dr. Waterman could relate to me and we spent time at the same Army base.”

Ron has dedicated nearly 40 years to serving fellow veterans through Disabled American Veterans and was eventually elected national commander where he spoke in front of congress. Ron is a family man who continues to fly in his spare time.

We are proud to have faculty members and teammates who are not only military veterans themselves, but who also are passionate about caring for fellow veterans and their families at the VA Medical Center in Salisbury, N.C. and throughout our Wake Forest Baptist facilities.

11/11/2025

It is the highest honor to be able to take care of our military service members, past & present. Patients like Ron inspire us everyday. To him and all our other veterans, thank you!

10/12/2025

What a week back in RVA with friends, old & new. Thanks to the Orthopaedic Department at for allowing me to be your guest for the 2025 MEDRVA lecture. You’ve had an impressive lineup of previous keynote addresses (, , Steve Brockmeier, and others…), no pressure! In all sincerity, the sports medicine and shoulder teams were among the most welcoming and down to earth group I have ever visited, and to see the support and engagement from orthopedic community at Thursday night’s dinner was nothing short of outstanding. It’s a testament to the leadership and collegial spirit that & her team exudes. Fun and spirited debate about all things shoulder: tendon transfers, muscle advancement, biceps centralization, cable reconstruction, patches, and yes, even balloons.🎈 Thanks for your generosity of time and effort.

It was also a big trip down memory lane in Central Virginia. Over 20 years ago, I showed up to Massey Cancer Center as a lab assistant after UVA, looking to resurrect my academic credentials while living in The Fan, and hopefully find a path to medical school. Even further back still, I went to middle school in Chester. And the origin story of it all, Hopewell, VA where I was born while living my parents were stationed at Ft. Lee. It’s amazing to reflect on all the formative influences and humble beginnings at each stage of this journey, all of which I’m incredibly grateful for. A full circle moment, so thanks to the team at VCU for allowing me to live that out. Persistent, hard work, and the relationships you build will always define you, so invest in them and let the legacy of Alex Vap continue on. 🙏

09/27/2025

The Travelling Fellows from Latin America descended on North Carolina for the second leg of their U.S. tour. The Wake Forest & Duke teams combined forces to showcase the full Southern experience: TopGolf, NC Barbecue, al fresco dining, garden tours, microbrews, college futbol (, 7-0 W ‼️) and of course… shoulder surgery. Augmented RSA after failed SCR, revisions of a well fixed Neer stem, CAM procedures, anterior cable reconstruction with biceps augmentation, and much more. Great conversations and debates on contemporary topics!

All-stars Alessandro Nilo Fulvi (.nilo_; Mérida, MX) & Catalina Larrague (Buenos Aires, ARG) were incredible guests and shared their incredible experience with arthroscopic Eden-Hybinette procedure and Latarjet in collision athletes. Great talks at Duke Grand Rounds, and credit to Wake Forest colleagues , .traz, & for organizing an incredible schedule alongside Oke Anakwenze and Chris Klifto at Duke. As the pictures suggest, it’s a lot of heavy lifting, but so worth the effort to make the shoulder world feel that much smaller.

Don’t miss the out-takes at the end. It looks like we all need a little more work on the simulator!

09/20/2025

SECEC 2025 was a whirlwind trip to the Netherlands, and the international shoulder & elbow community did not disappoint. Despite a 30 hour unplanned side trip to JFK, Delta delivered as promised.

Our ASES Shoulder & Elbow Podcast highlighted several of the best research presentations, including Drs. Samuel Antuña, Arno Macken, Bjorn Salomonsson, and Maxime Antoni. Our ICL session on open and arthroscopic management of complex shoulder instability in the competitive athlete was packed, and credit to Peter Chalmers, Doruk Agkun, and Ruth Delaney. Our North American session led by ASES President Joaquin Sanchez-Sotelo highlighted the novel approaches to management of challenging rotator cuff pathology. Lastly, our session led by Clara Azevedo & Maristella Saccommano on How to Master Anterior Shoulder Instabilty offered a roadmap to success with Banakrt repair, DAS, and Latarjet procedures. Incredible discussion and presentations!

Rotterdam is an amazing city with vibrant architecture and a rich multicultural scene. From croquets to canals and bicycles, our Dutch hosts pulled out all the stops, including our former fellows dad, Dr. Maarten van der List. Congratulations to President and the executive committee for an incredible program. Thank you!

06/21/2025