Dr. Mesfin is the Division Chief of Spine Surgery and a Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Neurosurgery, Biomedical Engineering and Public Health at the University of Rochester. He has also served as the Director of the Louis A. Goldstein Spine Surgery Fellowship. He completed his Orthopaedic Surgery Residency at the John Hopkins Hospital. He completed the prestigious Adult and Pediatric Spine Surgery Fellowship at the Washington University in St. Louis. He also completed traveling fellowships focusing on spine oncology at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, Kanazawa University and Keio University in Japan and at the Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute in Italy.
Dr. Mesfin is active in research and has presented at more than 250 local, national and international meetings along with more than 160 peer reviewed publications. He is a member of the Cervical Spine Research Society, Scoliosis Research Society, North American Spine Society, Lumbar Spine Research Society. He is also member of orthopaedic organizations: American Orthopaedic Association, AAOS, and the scientific chair of the J. Robert Gladden Society. He has won several awards for his research and has received grant funding for his spine research. He has served in the United States Army Reserves and has deployed to Afghanistan as the Orthopaedic Surgeon of a Forward Surgical Team (FST). He is interested in Global Health and has taught and operated at a trauma center in Ethiopia.
- Location: University of Rochester Medical Center
- Website: Link
Jonathan J. Stone, MD, MSe is a faculty member in the Departments of Neurosurgery, Neurology & Biomedical Engineering and the Director of Surgical Innovation at the University of Rochester Medical Center. Dr. Stone’s clinical interests are in peripheral nerve surgery, primarily focusing on traumatic nerve injuries (brachial plexus, gun-shot wounds, sharp transections, or iatrogenic causes), nerve sheath tumors (extremity, intrathoracic, or intra-abdominal), compression syndromes (carpal tunnel, ulnar nerve, or other less common sites), and targeted nerve or muscle biopsies. During the treatment of these disorders, he employs advanced reconstructive techniques such as nerve grafting and transfers to restore function. He also provides care for general neurosurgical diseases of the brain and spine. He maintains a busy practice offering patients either traditional open or minimally invasive treatment options.
Dr. Stone completed his residency training in Neurosurgery at the University of Rochester Medical Center and completed fellowship training in peripheral nerve surgery at the Mayo Clinic. He also performs advanced surgical planning and rehearsal using 3D printing at the Institute for Innovative Education. He is also an alumni of the CMTI MS program.
Dr. Lerner is an Associate Professor in Biomedical Engineering, with fifteen years experience in BME design education, and prior industry experience in space suit design. Her research interest in orthopaedic biomechanics emphasizes the use of robust design methods to optimize computational models to understand risks for osteoarthritis.
Dr. Gdowski is an Associate Professor in Biomedical Engineering. He most recently worked for Blue Highway, Inc., where he helped to foster academic and industrial partnerships. He also managed the R&D team that delivered multiple products, services, and tools to Welch Allyn. Prior to Blue Highway, he served as a faculty member for ten years in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Rochester.
