Address

1504 S.E. 28th

Bentonville, AR 72712

Office Hours

Mon-Thurs 8:00 am – 5:00 pm

Office Number

479-273-1111

Fax Number

844-286-8321

Orthopedic Surgery and Sports Medicine

Northwest Arkansas Team Base – Major League Service

Dr. Christopher Dougherty

An Official Team Physician for the Kansas City Royals

The Official Team Physician for the Arkansas Naturals

Welcome to Dr. Christopher Dougherty Orthopedics

Surgical Pioneer

A recognized innovator, Dr. Dougherty has vast experience in cutting edge orthobiologic and surgical hip repair options, meniscus tear treatment, and minimally-invasive shoulder surgery.

Major League Service

With leadership and educational roles in national sports medicine and educational organizations, every patient benefits from Dr. Dougherty’s major league approach to your care and recovery.

Patient Focus

Advocating for improved patient safety and access to treatment, Dr. Dougherty offers video-based exercises designed to prevent injuries and hit your recovery out of the ballpark.

Draft a proven leader in orthopedic surgery and rehab to your healthcare team

From his Northwest Arkansas base, Dr. Dougherty has pioneered surgical procedures and developed the most advanced rehab protocols in the state. His patented procedures and orthotics along with published articles assist surgeons in performing advanced surgeries for patients worldwide.

Arkansas Hip Institute

Dedicated to the most comprehensive and advanced hip surgeries, the Arkansas Hip Institute is comprised of Dr. Christopher Dougherty and Dr. Mike Maline. Dr. Dougherty has performed over 2,000 hip procedures and Dr. Maline has been performing anterior total hips for 11 years.

The Arkansas Hip Institute is proud to offer the following services: Cellular Therapy Treatments, Hip Arthroscopies, Anterior Total Hip Replacements, Total Hip Replacements, and Out-Patient Total Hip Replacements.

Arkansas OrthoBiologics

Orthobiologics is one of the cutting edge techniques used by Dr. Dougherty to help injuries heal . Using substances found naturally in your body – such as cells, tissues, growth factors or blood components like plasma cells – these treatments address recover of broken bones and injured muscles, tendons and ligaments.

Choose a surgical pioneer to hit your recovery out of the park.

Proactive pre- and post-surgery videos to ensure you continue your active lifestyle.

Watch the rest of my videos HERE.

Ankle Injuries:

The human ankle is used for up-and-down movement of the foot.
Ankle injuries can severely impair your ability to walk, run and jump.
Three bones make up the ankle:

  • The shin bone
  • The fibula
  • The talus


The subtalar joint sits below the ankle joint, and provides side-to-side motion of the foot. Numerous ligaments surround your ankle and joints, binding the bones of the leg to each other and to those of your foot.

Common ankle injuries:

  • Ankle Fracture
  • Talus Fracture
  • Achilles Tendonitis
  • Arthritis of the Foot and Ankle
  • Chronic Lateral Ankle Pain
  • Sprains
  • Achilles Tendon Rupture


Did you know that men injure their Achilles tendons 20 times more often than women? Male athletes should be especially diligent in performing exercises that strengthen the ankle. Ankle arthroscopy is a minimally invasive way to inspect and treat ankle conditions and injuries.

Procedures Dr. Dougherty performs:

  • Arthroscopy of the ankle
  • Articular cartilage restoration of the ankle
  • Arthroscopically assisted Ankle fusion
  • Minimally invasive ankle instability reconstructions
  • Articular Cartilage repair and transplantation
  • Arthroscopically assisted ankle fracture repair
  • Arthroscopic Ankle debridement
  • Arthroscopic Os -Trigonum excision
  • Subtalar Arthroscopy

Knee Cartilage Restoration

Methods used in knee cartilage restoration:

A) Arthroscopic debridement and microfracture: In a patient who has an isolated focal chondral defect, the physician can insert a small camera to locate the damaged tissue and debride the torn areas away. They then make small holes in the bone. This is called a “microfracture”. The purpose of the microfracture is to allow these holes to serve as channels allowing the bone marrow cells to propagate through the channels to the hole. These bone marrow cells will then form a cartilage covering that resembles normal articular cartilage.


B) Osteochondral Autograft: In this technique, the surgeon removes a piece of cartilage from a portion of the knee that does not bear weight and transfers the plug to a damaged portion in the knee. This is very similar to a hair plug transfer. This has excellent results in full thickness cartilage defects in areas less than 2 square centimeters.


C) Allograft Reconstruction: If there is a focal defect larger than 2 square centimeters, that is too large for an osteochondral autograft, then an allograft reconstruction is an excellent option. The surgeons will implant a piece of freshly donated cartilage and bone from a cadaver into the patient’s bone. The donated cartilage and bone will grow into the patient’s bone as it were the patient’s own. This has excellent results for patient who have large defects.


D) Autologous Chondrocyte Implantations: The autologous chondrocyte implantation is also known as the Carticel procedure. This was developed in Sweden over 20 years ago. It was approved by the FDA in 1995. This is the most exciting area of cartilage restoration to date. This procedure, as a result of bio-technology, uses the patient’s own cartilage to restore defects in the joint surface. This is a 2 stage procedure. In the first stage, the surgeon harvests a few small samples of cartilage cells from a portion of the knee that is non-weight bearing. The cells are then placed into a sterile test tube and sent to a laboratory where through advanced culturing techniques, the cell numbers increase from a few hundred thousand cells to over 12 million cells. The surgeon then returns at a later date and re-implants these cells into the knee joint through a second, open operative procedure. Then, a soft tissue flap is sewn over the defect. The cells are placed into the defect where they begin to grow and multiply. The uniqueness of this procedure is that the cells which fill the defect are the patient’s own cartilaginous cells and if heal as planned, they return to almost a pre-injury status, reestablishing the articular cartilage.

Knee Injuries

Dr. Dougherty is a clinical investigator for cartilage transplant research, and has been at the forefront of developing new and better procedures for the repair of knee injuries.

Common knee injuries:

  • ACL Tear
  • Meniscus Tear
  • PCL Tear
  • Kneecap Instability
  • Cartilage Injuries, Including Loose or Worn Cartilage
  • Patellar Bursitis

Did you Know...

  • Double Bundle ACL surgery is more effective at returning the knee to its normal range of motion than traditional knee repair approaches? Dr. Dougherty uses this unique and approach to get the best results for his patients, and to reduce cost and the risk of complications. His patent pending Double Bundle ACL and PCL tear treatments help restore your knee’s function as close to its pre-injury state a currently possible.
  • Women have been shown to be more prone to ACL injuries? Female athletes should be especially diligent about performing exercises that strengthen the knee

Procedures Dr. Dougherty performs:

  • Arthroscopy of the knee
  • All Arthroscopic Anterior Cruciate ligament reconstruction double bundle
  • All Arthroscopic Posterior Cruciate ligament double reconstruction – double bundle
  • Complex ligament reconstructions of the medial and lateral sides of the knee
  • Meniscal repair
  • Meniscal Transplantation
  • High Tibial Osteotomy for joint leveling in arthritis
  • Articular Cartilage repair and transplantation

Hip Injuries

People of all ages experience hip injuries, although there is much greater
risk for those children and young adults who play sports. Hip injuries are also
found in senior citizens, who are prone to falling due to decreased bone
density and joint elasticity, or even osteoporosis.
Dr. Dougherty is one of the nation’s leading arthroscopic hip surgeons. He
has worked closely with the medical device industry to develop new
implants and procedures for the treatment of hip conditions and injuries.

Common Hip injuries:

  • Hip Bursitis
  • Inflammatory Arthritis of the Hip (Synovitis)
  • Osteoarthritis of the Hip
  • Osteonecrosis of the Hip
  • Bone Spurs
  • Hip fractures
  • Strains
  • Snapping Hip Syndrome

Did you know:

That a click or sharp, shooting pain in the hip experienced while walking may be a sign of a condition called snapping hip?
Most common in girls, this condition frequently goes untreated for very long periods of time, but can be painful when aggravated by injury. It is caused when the movement of tendons over the bones of the hip is temporarily stopped or slowed by contact with the bone, creating a snapping sensation. It is most common in young athletes, especially girls, and is not noticeable in x-rays. If you or your child experience a snapping sensation in the hip during motion and x-rays are negative, it is best to be checked for snapping hip syndrome.

Procedures Dr. Dougherty performs:

  • Arthroscopy of the hip – diagnostic
  • Arthroscopic Impingement resection
  • Arthroscopic labral debridement & repair
  • Arthroscopic synovectomy
  • Arthroscopic capsule release
  • Arthroscopic loose body removal
  • Arthroscopic articular cartilage repair
  • Arthroscopic articular cartilage debridement
  • Arthroscopic treatment of trochanteric bursitis

Shoulder Injuries

Approximately 7.5 million people each year visit their doctor for shoulder problems. Over 2 million of those visits consist of shoulder injuries. The shoulder is a complex joint with many moving parts. Shoulder injuries are caused by activities that involve excessive, overhead motion. Common sports that involve this type of movement include swimming, tennis, baseball, or weightlifting. Shoulder injuries can also occur from other activities, such as hanging curtains, installing drywall, or gardening. A small injury to one bone, muscle or tendon can affect the way we use the whole joint, leading to further injury. It’s important to respond quickly to shoulder pain and fix the problem immediately.

Common Shoulder injuries:

  • Rotator Cuff Tear
  • Clavicle (Collarbone) Fracture
  • Labrum Tear
  • Shoulder Dislocation
  • Shoulder Impingement
  • Shoulder Separation
  • AC Joint Injuries or Pain

Did you know:

  • The clavicle (collarbone) is the most frequently broken bone in the body?
    Dr. Dougherty is the developer of a special clavicle pin that restores range of motion after a break in just days. Older treatments require immobilizing the arm for weeks.

  • The rotator cuff is not a single muscle, but rather a group of muscles, bones, ligaments tendons that work together to help you move your arms? Arthroscopic rotator cuff procedures are significantly quicker and less painful than traditional open surgeries, with much shorter recovery times. Dr. Dougherty nearly always performs rotator cuff scopes on an out-patient basis.

Procedures Dr. Dougherty performs:

  • All arthroscopic rotator cuff repairs
  • Arthroscopic labral repairs
  • Arthroscopic Instability repair
  • Capsular shrinkage surgery
  • Shoulder replacement surgery
  • Bipolar X-ray
  • Articular Cartilage repair and transplantation
  • Arthroscopic Labral Allograft/Xenograft reconstruction
  • Acromioclavicular joint reconstruction
  • All Arthroscopic- Subacromial decompression
  • All Arthroscopic Acromioclavicular joint resection
  • Pectoralis Major avulsion repairs
  • Subacromial Decompressions
  • Subcoracoid decompression
  • Arthroscopic Biceps tendon transfer (repairs biceps tendonitis, eliminating pain)

Wrist Pain Treatment

Dr. Dougherty uses minimally invasive wrist pain diagnosis and wrist pain treatment techniques for injuries and conditions of the wrist, leading to less
pain, shorter recovery times and greater mobility during recovery.

Common Wrist Injuries:

  • Distal Ulnar and Radial fractures
  • Arthritis of the Wrist
  • Tendinitis
  • Ganglion (Cyst) of the Wrist
  • Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
  • Sprains
  • Wrist Arthroscopy for Triangular Fibrocartilage Repair

Did you know:

Chronic wrist pain isn’t always arthritis or carpal tunnel syndrome?

The cartilage of the wrist can become worn or torn just like that of the knee, and cartilage generally heals more slowly than other tissues of the body because it does not contain blood vessels. Dr. Dougherty is one of the foremost cartilage surgeons in the United States, and has developed reliable methods for diagnosing cartilage injuries in the wrist.

Procedures Dr. Dougherty performs:

  • Arthroscopy of the Wrist and Hand
  • Wrist instability surgery- Open
  • Wrist instability surgery- Arthroscopic
  • Arthroscopically assisted repair of wrist fractures
  • Arthroscopic removal of cysts about the wrist
  • Arthroscopically assisted limited wrist fusion
  • Arthroscopic Ulnar Shortening
  • Minimally invasive carpal tunnel release
  • Triangular fibrocartilage debridement & repair
  • Arthroscopic Wrist Debridement
  • Arthroscopic STT joint debridement
  • Hand and wrist fusions
  • Arthroscopic Radial Styloidectomy
  • Arthroscopic CMC joint debridement and hemitrapezectomy