Meet Dr. Steve Derrington, DO
Non-surgical orthopedic and spine care that puts your body’s own healing to work.
Dr. Steve Derrington is a board-certified physical medicine and rehabilitation physician and the medical director and CEO of Derrington Orthopedics – Interventional Sports and Spine, with offices in Carlsbad and Laguna Hills. He has spent the last 10 years focused on interventional orthobiologics and has treated patients as a Regenexx physician since 2016.
His practice performs more Regenexx procedures every year than any other clinic in California and ranked third in the country in 2023.
Time to understand your problem
A lot of orthopedic care runs on insurance time limits: a quick visit, a cortisone shot, some physical therapy, and surgery once things get bad enough. Dr. Derrington built his practice to work differently.
Your evaluation starts with your story and your goals. It includes a thorough exam, with in-office diagnostic ultrasound for most joint and tendon problems, and ends with a clear look at every real option, from cortisone and PRP to BMAC, laser and light therapy, and surgery. You should leave knowing what is going on and what your choices are.
Precision is the point
- 01
An accurate diagnosis
- 02
An adequate dose
- 03
The right spot
Results with orthobiologic treatment come down to three things: an accurate diagnosis, an adequate dose, and delivering that dose to the right spot. Every injection here is guided by ultrasound or fluoroscopy (live x-ray). Your platelet-rich plasma (PRP) or bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC), which contains stem cells, is prepared from your own blood or bone marrow in our on-site lab.
The doctor other doctors learn from
When physicians want to learn these procedures, Dr. Derrington is often the one teaching them.
Since 2019 he has been a course instructor for the Interventional Orthobiologics Foundation (IOF), teaching intermediate and advanced courses on the spine, shoulder and elbow, knee, hand and wrist, and foot and ankle, along with bone marrow aspirate and adipose harvesting. He also serves on the IOF curriculum committee. Since 2023 he has taught ultrasound-guided spine and joint injections for OrthoSono.
He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and a member of the Orthobiologics Ethics Consortium.
- Spine
- Shoulder and elbow
- Knee
- Hand and wrist
- Foot and ankle
- Bone marrow aspirate
- Adipose harvesting
How he got here
Dr. Derrington grew up playing sports year round and won a high school state championship in the 300m hurdles. At Macalester College he played football and baseball, earning all-conference honors as a pitcher while also playing first base, outfield, and designated hitter. He spent his spare time with the athletic training staff, helping injured athletes get back to their sports. Like a lot of athletes, he assumed surgery was how you fixed an injury.
Medical school changed his thinking. His osteopathic training at Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences rests on two ideas that stuck with him: the body has a real capacity to heal, and structure and function are connected. During his residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, he saw how often standard pain treatments simply held patients in place until they were “bad enough” for surgery. He wanted something better to offer.
That search led him to a fellowship in interventional spine, sports, and regenerative medicine with Dr. Marko Bodor in Napa, California. There he trained in diagnostic ultrasound and in using ultrasound and fluoroscopic guidance to place platelets and cells exactly where healing is needed.
Fellowship is also where he saw the difference play out in real patients. Many of the people he treated with PRP and BMAC got better, and then they sent their family and friends. This was Napa, where nearly everyone worked in the wine industry in some way, so they often showed up with a bottle as a thank-you. Patients treated with steroids or pain medication, on the other hand, kept coming back for another injection and another prescription. The direction he wanted to take his patients was clear.
In 2016 he joined HealthLink Medical Center, an established Regenexx clinic. In 2020 he took over ownership of its San Diego and Orange County locations and renamed the practice Derrington Orthopedics – Interventional Sports and Spine.
Training
- B.A., Neuroscience Studies, Macalester College
- Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences
- Internship, Wellington Regional Medical Center, Florida
- Residency, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia
- Fellowship, Interventional Spine, Sports and Regenerative Medicine, with Dr. Marko Bodor, Napa, California
- Board certified, American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Research and writing
Dr. Derrington has co-authored published research on rotator cuff calcific tendinopathy and on the accuracy of ultrasound-guided injections compared with landmark-guided injections. He has also written two textbook chapters: one on lumbar epidural injections in Spine Surgery: Tricks of the Trade, and one on cervical injection techniques in the Atlas of Interventional Orthopedics Procedures, co-authored with his fellowship mentor, Dr. Marko Bodor. During residency at Jefferson, he received the resident award for exemplary medical student teaching three years in a row.
Hear from Dr. Derrington
Dr. Derrington has talked about non-surgical orthopedics, photobiomodulation, and regenerative care on podcasts including Innovators of Health, Prime Health, Healthcare Corner, Men Made for More, and Stick To The Program.
- Innovators of Health
- Prime Health
- Healthcare Corner
- Men Made for More
- Stick To The Program
Outside the clinic
You will find him at CrossFit, enjoying good food and music, or exploring the world with his family.
Ready to talk through your options?
Schedule an evaluation at our Carlsbad or Laguna Hills office.
