Captain Pittner is a native of Ohio, and attended Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana, on a Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) scholarship, earning a degree in Biomedical Engineering. After receiving his commission as an Ensign in the U.S. Navy in 1998, he pursued his medical degree at Case Western Reserve University through the Health Professions Scholarship Program, graduating in 2002. He then completed his residency training in orthopedic surgery at The Ohio State University.
In 2007, Captain Pittner began his active-duty service as a staff orthopedic surgeon at Naval Hospital Guam, where he also served as the Department Head of Orthopedic Surgery. In 2009, he joined the staff at Naval Hospital Pensacola and deployed in 2010 to Kuwait as the orthopedic surgeon at the Expeditionary Medical Facility.
In 2012, Captain Pittner completed a subspecialty fellowship in hand and upper extremity surgery at the University of Pittsburgh. His next assignment took him overseas to Naval Hospital Okinawa, where he served as the hand surgeon for the Western Pacific region. His exceptional leadership and clinical skills were recognized when he was named Naval Hospital Okinawa's Medical Officer of the Year in 2013.
Upon relocating to Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune in 2014, he held several key leadership positions, including Chair of the Medical Executive Committee, Director of Surgical Services, and Orthopedic Specialty Leader. In 2018, Captain Pittner was appointed Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of a Forward Resuscitative Surgical System in support of the Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force (SPMAGTF), where he led efforts to provide critical surgical care in a forward-deployed environment. Currently, Captain Pittner serves as the Acting Executive Officer, the Director of Health Services, and Chief Medical Officer at 2d Medical Battalion on Camp Lejeune.
Captain Pittner is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon with subspecialty certification in hand surgery. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons and an active member of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand and the Society of Military Orthopedic Surgeons. His personal awards include two Meritorious Service Medals, three Navy/Marine Corps Commendation Medals, four Navy/Marine Corps Achievement Medals, and numerous other campaign, service, and unit awards.