Washington, D.C. - D.C. United announced today details of a successful wrist surgery for Josh Gros. The midfielder underwent a procedure yesterday to repair his left scaphoid bone using a bone graft. Gros, who originally suffered a non-union fracture of the wrist bone during the 2004 season and underwent a similar surgery on his right wrist in December of 2005, needed this operation to complete the healing process of a fracture suffered in the preseason. Dr. Jeffrey Lovallo, a hand specialist from the Anderson Clinic in Arlington, VA, performed the surgery. Gros will be in a cast for 6-8 weeks and will miss the remainder of United's season.
Gros has also suffered from head-related injuries throughout United's 2007 campaign. The Mechanicsburg, PA native was struck in the head with the ball in United's CONCACAF Champions' Cup game against CD Guadalajara on March 15 and has worn protective headgear since that time. Following a similar occurrence early in United's August 18 match at the Columbus Crew, Gros again experienced nausea and blurred vision and was subbed from the game in the 9th minute. Following visits to Dr. Neal Kurzrok in the Neurology Center at Washington Hospital Center and Dr. Mark Lovell at the University of Pittsburgh Sports Medicine Concussion Program, the 25-year-old was diagnosed with post-traumatic migranes and cleared to resume activity. Gros was again sidelined after headaches resurfaced during United's Copa Sudamericana match at CD Guadalajara September 26. The club is still awaiting results of recent testing performed by Dr. Robert Cantu, expert neurologist in Concord, Mass., following the latest incident. Dr. Cantu suggested following his consultation with Gros, that the midfielder not play the remainder of the 2007 season.
"As we continue to monitor the cause of Josh's migranes and how to best deal with the issue long term, it became evident that the best course of action was to shut him down for the remainder of this season," said United General Manager Dave Kasper. "This is a very serious issue and we wish to address all options with Josh's best interest being the priority. We had previously targeted an off-season wrist surgery for him. We have now addressed that need and will focus solely on providing Josh all of the resources necessary to identify the cause of and treatment for his head trauma."
United acquired Gros in 2004, a season in which he made a quick transition from fill-in substitute to full-time starter, becoming the first United draft pick to log more than 2,000 minutes since the club's inaugural season. In 2005, he followed up his rookie campaign with another solid season, notching four goals and four assists, including a Goal of the Week tally versus Columbus on May 7. Gros continued his rapid development in 2006, starting each of the 29 games in which he played. He set a career-high with five assists while totaling three goals on his way to his first MLS All-Star game. The adaptable midfielder provided the game-winning goal against Houston on April 15 and the game-winning assist against Kansas City on June 24.
In 2007, Gros received his second call up to the U.S. Men's National Team, participating in the team's training camp in January and earning his first international appearance in the U.S.' victory over Mexico in Glendale, AZ on February 7. He has since remained a consistent member of United's first team, where he has played in the midfield and as a part of the team's four-man back line. Gros started all 22 games in which he appeared this season and provided the game-winning tally in United's 3-0 win at New England on August 5.
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