Frank P. Cammisa, Jr., M.D.

Spinal Surgery  |  Hospital for Special Surgery

Dr. Frank Cammisa, Jr. is currently the Chief Emeritus of the Spine Service at The Hospital for Special Surgery. He is a nationally recognized spinal expert, with special expertise in minimally invasive spinal surgery, total disc replacement, athletic spinal injuries, and surgical treatment of other spinal disorders. Dr. Cammisa is credited with introducing the technique of total disc replacement to the United States as an alternative to spinal fusion surgery and has led extensive research studies on this topic.

Dr. Cammisa holds affiliations with the following societies: the North American Spine Society, American Spinal Injury Association, American College of Surgeons, Cervical Spine Research Society, and the International Society for the Study of Lumbar Spine. He has been awarded with the North American Traveling Fellowship by the American Orthopedic Association as well as a Spinal Research Award and a Fellow Scholar Award by the Eastern Orthopedic Association. He is the founder of the National Spinal Research Foundation.

As an Assistant Scientist in the Research Division of the Hospital for Special Surgery, Dr. Cammisa devotes much of his time to research. His research interests include computer-assisted image guidance, demineralized bone matrix, minimally invasive spinal surgery, and the artificial disc as an alternative to spinal fusion for debilitating back pain. He serves as the principal investigator for many ongoing clinical trials at Hospital for Special Surgery. Additionally, Dr. Cammisa was one of the lead principal investigators of a multi-year, multi-center national study funded by a $21 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. This study was one of the first to directly compare the effectiveness of surgical versus nonsurgical approaches to treating herniated discs, spinal stenosis and degenerative spondylolisthesis.

Dr. Cammisa has authored or co-authored over 100 journal articles and abstracts in dozens of prestigious publications including the New England Journal of Medicine and the Journal of the American Medical Association. He has published over 30 medical textbook chapters and has presented his clinical and research results at hundreds of domestic and international professional meetings.

Profile

• Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, New York:
  • Chief Emeritus, Spine Service
  • Associate Attending Orthopedic Surgeon
  • Assistant Scientist, Research Division
  • Consultant, Spinal Cord Injury Unit
• Assistant Attending Surgeon, New York Hospital
• Associate Professor of Clinical Orthopedic Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical College

Education

M.D., Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, 1982

Internship

General Surgery, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, New York, New York, 1983

Residency

Orthopedic Surgery, Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, New York, 1987

Fellowship

Spinal Surgery, University of Miami, Miami, Florida, 1988

Certifications

American Board of Orthopedic Surgery

Hospital Affiliation & Admitting Privileges

• The Hospital for Special Surgery
• New York Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center