Biography
Dr. Lambi received a B.A. degree in music performance (vocal concentration) with a Minor in Italian language and a University Honors Citation from the University of Maryland College Park in 2008. He attended medical school at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University in Philadelphia, PA, graduating in 2015. During his time at Temple, Dr. Lambi also earned a Ph.D. in Cell Biology. He completed his doctoral work in the laboratory of Dr. Steven Popoff where he studied the role of the matricellular protein connective tissue growth factor (CTGF/CCN2) in skeletal development. He completed a General Surgery Internship at Temple University Hospital after which he completed an Integrated Plastic Surgery Residency at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA. He then completed a Hand, Upper Extremity, and Microsurgery Fellowship at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine in Albuquerque, NM. After Fellowship, he was recruited by the New Mexico VA Health Care System to serve as the Plastic Surgery Section Chief as well as the University of New Mexico to serve as faculty in the Department of Surgery, Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. He also holds faculty appointments in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Division of Hand, Upper Extremity, and Microsurgery, as well as the Department of Cell Biology and Physiology. He is a Full Member of the UNM Comprehensive Cancer Center where he serves in the Cancer Therapeutics program. Dr. Lambi is actively involved in resident and fellow education. He serves as the Associate Program Director for the UNM Plastic Surgery Residency and the Site Director for the NM VA Plastic Surgery Residency. He also has an active role in basic and translational research, where he studies the role of CTGF in overuse injury-induced soft tissue fibrosis and neuromuscular dysfunction. He is currently investigating causative agents and possible therapeutic targets in radiation-induced soft tissue fibrosis. Dr. Lambi maintains active involvement multiple regional and national societies. He has served as an invited speaker and/ session at the annual meetings for the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research, Advances in Mineral Metabolism, Orthopaedic Research Society, and Mountain West Society for Plastic Surgeons.
Personal Statement
I am a board-eligible plastic and reconstructive surgeon, as well as board-eligible hand and upper extremity surgeon. I am also a trained cell biologist and anatomist with a broad background in musculoskeletal biology, structure, and function. As a clinician and surgeon, I extend that understanding to musculoskeletal disorders and injuries and their treatments. I began my career in musculoskeletal biology, where I worked to elucidate the role of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF/CCN2) in bone cell development and function. These studies involved the characterization of the bone phenotype in genetically engineered mice in which CTGF is either absent or over-expressed. The analyses included micro-CT, histomorphometry, immunohistochemistry, qPCR, Western blot analysis of bone markers, and ex vivo assays to test bone cell differentiation and function. In collaboration with Dr. Mary Barbe, who developed a novel and unique operant rat model for overuse-induced musculoskeletal disorders, we have examined the effects of overuse injury on bone remodeling and the role of CTGF on the maladaptive fibrosis that occurs in the musculoskeletal and other soft tissues. These studies utilize micro-CT analyses, histomorphometry, and cell culture experiments to investigate underlying mechanisms of injury and degeneration. My goal as a surgeon-scientist is to transition our work on overuse-induced disorders to my patients that I treat for injuries involving similar pathological responses in bone and soft tissue, such as distal radius fragility fractures, nerve compression disorders (e.g., carpal tunnel syndrome), and fibrotic disorders (e.g., Dupuytren’s contracture, radiation-induced fibrosis).
Areas of Specialty
Plastic and Reconstructive surgery
Hand and Upper Extremity Surgery
Peripheral Nerve Injuries
Nerve Entrapments (e.g. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome)
Hand and Wrist Arthritis
Dupuytren’s Disease
Hand and Wrist Fractures
Achievements & Awards
2001 Eagle Scout, Boy Scouts of America
2007 Stringer Foundation Performing Arts Scholar, University of Maryland
2008 Magna Cum Laude, University of Maryland
2008 Phi Beta Kappa National Honor Society, University of Maryland
2008 Pi Kappa Lambda National Music Honor Society First in Class Award, University of Maryland School of Music
2015 Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society, Temple University School of Medicine
2023 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research 2023 Young Investigator Award
2024 Orthopaedic Research Society and Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation Travel Grant
Gender
Male
Languages
- English
Research and Scholarship
Lambi, A.G., Pankratz, T.L., Mundy, C.M., Gannon, M., Barbe, M.F., Richtsmeier, J.T., Popoff, S.N. The skeletal site-specific role of connective tissue growth factor in prenatal osteogenesis. (2012) Developmental Dynamics, vol (241), pp. 1944-1959. (PMID 23073844)
Barbe, M.F., Amin, M., Gingery, A., Lambi, A.G., Popoff, S.N. Blocking CCN2 Preferentially Inhibitis Osteoclastogenesis Induced by Repetitive High Force Bone Loading. (2020) Connective Tissue Research (PMID 32683988)
Lambi, A.G., Popoff, S.N., Benhaim, P., Barbe, M.F. Pharmacotherapies in Dupuytren Disease: Current & Novel Strategies (2023) Journal of Hand Surgery, vol. 48(8): 810-821.(PMID 36935324)
Lambi, A.G., Popoff, S.N., Barbe, M.F. Blocking CCN2 Reduces Established Losses in Bone Volume Induced by Prolonged Intense Loading by Increasing Osteoblast Activity and Trabecular Thickness (2023) JBMR Plus, vol. 16;7(9):e10783 (PMID 37701153)
Lambi, A.G., Desante, R., Popoff, S.N., Barbe, M.F. Blocking CCN2 Reduces Established Palmar Neuromuscular Fibrosis and Improves Function following Repetitive Overuse Injury (2023) Int J Mol Sci. Sep 8;24(18):13866 (PMID 37762168)