David Bakal, MD

David Bakal, MD, is a sports medicine physician specializing in diagnosing and managing acute and chronic musculoskeletal injuries non-surgically. He is board certified in both sports medicine, and physical medicine and rehabilitation.

His approach to care often involves specific rehabilitation exercises and minimally invasive ultrasound-guided procedures, including peripheral joint injections, percutaneous needle tenotomies, nerve hydro-dissections, and orthobiologics, such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP). He enjoys educating his patients on their condition and working together on a treatment plan that best aligns with their health and fitness goals.

Dr. Bakal is active in sports medicine research and has a special interest in injury prevention in soccer athletes and the use of orthobiologics for the treatment of orthopedic injuries. He has published multiple peer-reviewed journal articles and has presented his original research at national and international conferences, including the Isokinetic/FIFA Football Medicine Conference. He has also been engaged in resident and medical student education through sports medicine lectures and teaching musculoskeletal ultrasound at local and national conferences.

Dr. Bakal completed a sports medicine fellowship at Emory University, where he was the team physician for Emory University's NCAA athletes, and provided sideline medical coverage for the Atlanta Hawks (NBA), Atlanta Falcons (NFL), and College Park Skyhawks (NBA G-League). In addition, he served as one of the venue medical officers for the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup (international soccer tournament), providing sideline coverage for the men's national teams of Mexico and Jamaica.

He completed residency training in physical medicine and rehabilitation at Stanford University, where he provided medical care to the university's NCAA athletes and served as the resident director of the orthopedics free clinic. He earned his medical degree from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He is a member of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine (AMSSM).

A lifelong athlete himself, Dr. Bakal understands the importance of helping his patients remain active and recover quickly after injury. Before becoming a physician, he captained the NCAA soccer team at UC San Diego and played professionally in the USL Championship (MLS 2nd Division). Outside of work, he enjoys playing soccer, basketball, beach volleyball and surfing. He speaks Spanish and Portuguese.

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For more information, see Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine.