About TJ Ridley, MD

Dr. TJ Ridley is a sports medicine fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeon specializing in arthroscopic surgery, as well as minimally invasive knee, hip and shoulder replacement. He has a subspecialty focus on cartilage preservation and hip arthroscopy. Dr. Ridley additionally performs robotic-assisted knee replacement surgery. He offers assessment and diagnostic care as a sports medicine/orthopedic surgeon for all musculoskeletal conditions as well as activity-related sports injuries. He provides treatments ranging from medications and therapies to surgical and non-surgical procedures.

Dr. Ridley graduated summa cum laude from Gustavus Adolphus College while playing both football and hockey. He went on to earn two Academic All-American awards. After completing medical school at the University of Iowa, Dr. Ridley completed his orthopaedic residency at the University of Minnesota. While at Minnesota, he was a resident team physician for Patrick Henry High School football and served as a reviewer for the Journal of Arthroscopy. He was awarded the Gustilo Resident Research Award for his extensive research during residency.

Dr. Ridley pursued specialized training at the world-renowned Steadman Clinic and Steadman Philippon Research Institute in Vail, Colorado. He trained under leaders in sports medicine, including Doctors Tom Hackett, Armando Vidal, Peter Millett, Marc Philippon, and Matt Provencher. During this fellowship, Dr. Ridley learned advanced arthroscopic and reconstructive surgical techniques for the treatment of complex disorders of the knee, hip, shoulder, and elbow as well as all sports-related injuries. While there, Dr. Ridley cared for professional athletes from the NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, ATP/WTA, and PGA tours in addition to treating collegiate, high school, and recreational athletes. He served as the team physician for the US Men’s & Women’s Ski and Snowboard Teams.

Given Dr. Ridley’s specialized training and breadth of experience, he performs a unique set of surgical treatments when non-surgical treatments have failed. He firmly believes in listening to his patients so he can better understand their needs, limitations, and goals.

Throughout his training, Dr. Ridley has received awards for teaching and research. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, written book chapters and review articles, and produced instructional surgical videos. His work has been presented at numerous local, regional, national, and international meetings.

Dr. Ridley was also recently a patient himself, undergoing both right and left hip arthroscopies for femoral acetabular impingement with labral repair.

Dr. Ridley’s wife, Courtney, works for General Mills and they had their first child, a baby girl, in January of 2022. When not spending time with his family, he enjoys skiing, biking, fishing, and golfing.