About Hip and Knee Orthopedic Surgeon David Maish, MD

About Dr. Maish:

David Maish, MD is a board-certified orthopaedic surgeon specializing in primary and revision hip and knee replacement for over 20 years. He currently serves as Chief of Orthopaedics and Medical Director of the Orthopaedic Service Line at his community hospital in Frederick, Maryland. Fellowship-trained in adult reconstruction at Duke University Medical Center (opens in a new tab), Dr. Maish previously focused on complex joint reconstruction and has performed more than 2,000 revision joint replacement procedures during his career while teaching residents and fellows in academic medical centers.

Dr. Maish’s practice encompasses the full spectrum of adult hip and knee reconstruction, from primary total hip and total knee replacement to complex revision surgery. His extensive revision experience provides a perspective that also influences how he approaches primary joint replacement: careful planning, preservation of tissue and bone, attention to implant position and alignment, and selection of components appropriate to each patient’s individual anatomy.

For knee replacement, Dr. Maish combines computer-assisted surgery in the ROSA® robotic system with a highly personalized approach to reconstruction. Rather than treating every knee identically, his philosophy incorporates personalized alignment and personalized implant selection, using technology to help execute the surgical plan with precision while allowing the surgeon to make decisions based on the individual patient’s anatomy and natural mechanics.

His surgical workflow also emphasizes tissue-sparing techniques, including a subvastus approach, designed to minimize unnecessary disruption of the muscles and soft tissues surrounding the knee. His mastery of this approach allows him to offer this to all patients with extremely rare exceptions.

Surgery is only one component of the recovery process. Dr. Maish has developed a comprehensive multimodal, opioid-sparing recovery pathway incorporating modern pain-management strategies, including newer non-opioid medications such as Journavx (suzetrigine) when appropriate. The goal is to control pain while facilitating early mobility, restoration of range of motion, and rapid return to independence.

Dr. Maish has also embraced smart implants and emerging digital technologies that can provide objective information about patient function and recovery following joint replacement. Together with computer-assisted surgery, these technologies offer opportunities to further personalize both the operation and postoperative monitoring. Recording outcomes is critical and these technologies paired with American Joint Replacement Registry allow the success of his procedures to be measured for years to come.

Central to his philosophy is a comprehensive, coordinated, patient-centered team. Surgeons, nurses, therapists, medical specialists, and other members of the orthopaedic team work together throughout the patient’s journey, from preoperative optimization and surgical planning through hospitalization, rehabilitation, and recovery.

As Chief of Orthopaedics and Medical Director of the Orthopaedic Service Line, Dr. Maish works to extend these principles beyond his own surgical practice by developing systems and processes focused on quality, safety, efficiency, innovation, and a consistent patient experience throughout the orthopaedic service line.

Leadership and education have been recurring themes throughout his career. Before coming to Frederick, Dr. Maish served as Chief of Adult Reconstruction and Adult Reconstruction Fellowship Director at Geisinger. At Penn State he was an Assistant Professor of Orthopaedics and led the quality review (morbidity and mortality) conference for the Department of Orthopedic Surgery. He has received the resident teaching award at both Penn State and WellSpan and has served as an instructor for the American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons resident course.

Dr. Maish founded the Susquehanna Adult Reconstruction Society and has contributed to orthopaedic education through research, presentations, peer-reviewed publications, and textbook chapters, including contributions to the AAOS Comprehensive Orthopaedic Review and The Adult Hip.

After more than two decades devoted to adult reconstruction, Dr. Maish continues to pursue the same objective: combine extensive surgical experience with personalized reconstruction, tissue-sparing techniques, computer-assisted and robotic technology, modern pain management, and coordinated team-based care to help each patient achieve the best possible recovery.