Surgical Interests

• Ankle arthritis
• Total ankle replacement
• Complex and revision foot and ankle surgery
• Ankle instability
• Forefoot and minimally invasive surgery
• Foot and ankle trauma

Expertise

• Total ankle replacement including patient-specific techniques
• Ankle arthroscopy and ligament stabilisation
• Ankle fusion
• Foot and ankle fellowship, Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, Oxford
• Former Director of Training of Orthopaedics at Western Health
• Co-supervisor, Western Health Clinical Fellowship in Foot and Ankle Surgery

Biography

Mr David Shepherd is a foot and ankle surgeon with a public appointment at Western Health in foot and ankle surgery and trauma, and co-supervises the department’s Clinical Fellowship in Foot and Ankle Surgery. He has held senior roles in the department, including Director of Training of Orthopaedics. He graduated in medicine from Flinders University in 2001, completed his orthopaedic training in Victoria, and became a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons in 2011.

He completed a 12 month foot and ankle fellowship at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Oxford and a six month fellowship at the Centre Orthopedique Santy in Lyon, France, focused on ankle, hip and knee replacement. He has also made surgical visits to Bordeaux, Paris and Barcelona to learn forefoot and minimally invasive techniques, and trained in patient-specific total ankle replacement in Vancouver. His main interests are ankle arthritis, ankle replacement, ankle instability, arthroscopy, fusion and complex or revision surgery.

Mr Shepherd has been a Director of Training with the Australian Orthopaedic Association and has published internationally.

Publications

1. Vacariu E, Tevere A, Shepherd D, Schneider T, Talia A. Accuracy of radiology MRI reports in predicting syndesmotic injuries: An intraoperative correlation study. Foot Ankle Surg. 2026. doi:10.1016/j.fas.2026.06.020
2. Talia AJ, Roshan-Zamir S, Shepherd DW. Outcomes in Open Reduction and Internal Fixation of Tarsometatarsal (Lisfranc) Injuries: A Contemporary Review of Fixation Constructs. Foot Ankle Orthop. 2025;10(3):24730114251352519. doi:10.1177/24730114251352519
3. Talia AJ, Shepherd DW, Roshan-Zamir S. Displaced, intra-articular fractures of the calcaneus: Review of non-operative management, open reduction internal fixation and novel minimally invasive techniques. Foot (Edinb). 2025;62:102160. doi:10.1016/j.foot.2025.102160
4. Kvarda P, Mills A, Shepherd D, Schneider T. Lack of Consensus on the Definition of Aseptic Loosening in Total Ankle Replacement: A Narrative Systematic Review. J Clin Med. 2024;13(3). doi:10.3390/jcm13030786
5. Lenz CG, Urbanschitz L, Shepherd DW. Dynamic syndesmotic stabilisation and reinforcement of the antero-inferior tibiofibular ligament with internal brace. Foot (Edinb). 2023;56:102026. doi:10.1016/j.foot.2023.102026
6. Chong A, Nazarian N, Chandrananth J, Tacey M, Shepherd D, Tran P. Surgery for the correction of hallux valgus: minimum five-year results with a validated patient-reported outcome tool and regression analysis. Bone Joint J. 2015;97-B(2):208-14. doi:10.1302/0301-620X.97B2.34891
7. Asadollahi S, Shepherd D, Hau RC. Elbow fracture-dislocation combined with Galeazzi fracture in adult: A case report and literature review. Int J Surg Case Rep. 2013;4(8):748-52. doi:10.1016/j.ijscr.2013.04.032