New Leadership

ROSEMONT, Ill. (March 30, 2020)—Orthopaedic surgeon Alexander Vaccaro, MD, MBA, PhD, FAAOS became a member of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons’ (AAOS) Board of Directors today.

Dr. Vaccaro is the president of Rothman Orthopaedic Institute and Chairman of Orthopaedics at Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. In these roles, Dr. Vaccaro oversees the clinical, educational, and research enterprises for both Rothman and Jefferson. A world-renowned spinal surgeon and educator, Dr. Vaccaro previously served as vice chair at Rothman Institute and vice chair of orthopaedics at Jefferson.

Alexander Vaccaro, MD, MBA, PhD, FAAOS
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Dr. Vaccaro has authored hundreds of peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, co-edited textbooks, and received the Leon Wiltse Award for excellence in leadership and/or clinical research in spine care from the North American Spine Society, the largest international spine society in the world. He was ranked as one of the top-three cited authors in SPINE Journal from 1990 to 2009 and completed countless research studies presented at academic medical conferences across the globe. He is past president of the Association of Collaborative Spine Research and was the 17^th elected President of the American Spinal Injury Association. Among other notable achievements is his election as the first full-time orthopaedic surgeon to be named co-chair of the editorial board of Journal of Neurosurgery Spine.

He is currently a member of numerous professional societies, including the American Medical Association, the Philadelphia Orthopaedic Society, the Pennsylvania Orthopaedic Society, the American College of Physicians and Surgeons, the Cervical Spine Research Society, the North American Spine Society, the American Orthopaedic Association, the International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine, the American College of Physicians and Surgeons, the Scoliosis Research Society, and the American Association of Neurologic Surgeons.

Dr. Vaccaro earned his Bachelor of Science, graduating summa cum laude, from Boston College. He continued his education at Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C., where he also graduated with honors. He completed his residency in orthopaedics at Thomas Jefferson University and did a fellowship in spinal surgery at the University of California-San Diego. He then returned to Jefferson where he has remained and is now the Everett J. and Marian Gordon Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Professor of Neurosurgery. In 2007, Dr. Vaccaro completed his Ph.D. in spinal trauma and in 2015 earned his Master of Business Administration at the Fox School of Business at Temple University.

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About the AAOS
With more than 39,000 members, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons is the world’s largest medical association of musculoskeletal specialists. The AAOS is the trusted leader in advancing musculoskeletal health. It provides the highest quality, most comprehensive education to help orthopaedic surgeons and allied health professionals at every career level best treat patients in their daily practices. The AAOS is the source for information on bone and joint conditions, treatments and related musculoskeletal health care issues and it leads the health care discussion on advancing quality.

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