Dr.
Rudolph Bertagnoli is a global leader in non-fusion surgery,
training hundreds of surgeons in non-fusion techniques. Dr.
Bertagnoli has implanted almost every commercially available non-fusion
technology, including the ProDisc, Charite', ProDisc-C. Maverick,
Bryan cervical total disc replacements. Other non-fusion technologies
include the Raymedica PDN prosthetic disc nucleus, NeuDisc
nucleus replacement; also Dynesis, Wallis and Fixano-U posterior
stablization systems. Other research includes the CO.Don
ADCT autologous disc chondrocyte transplantation. Dr Bertagnoli
is the Current President, Spine
Arthroplasty Society and was the Keynote speaker, North
American Spine Society, 2004
Dr. Fabien Bitan's clinical
field is exclusively Spinal Surgery, including spinal deformities
and degenerative spine diseases. He has been the principal investigator
for
the FDA trial of the Charité artificial disc and the Dynesys posterior
stabilization system. Dr. Bitan has worked with this disc replacement technology since
the 1980s during his training in France where he studied with Dr. Thierry
David. He has had more than two hundred cases of simple and complex reconstructive
disc replacements. He organizes and
supervises research projects
in the fields of Scoliosis, Artificial Discs, Minimally Invasive
Spinal Surgery and Treatment of Osteoporotic Spinal Fractures.
In September, 2005, he began his current position as director
of spine surgery at New
York's prestigious Lennox Hill Hospital.
(See www.manhattanorthopaedics.com.)
Dr. Karin Buettner-Janz, Professor, and Dr. Kurt Shellnack
are credited with inventing the world's first commercially
viable
artificial intervertebral disc. (They are the S and B in SB
Charite' III.) The first implantation, on September
19th,
1984 marks the beginning of a new era for spine patients. She
is currently head of Orthopaedic Clinik, Vivantes Klinikum
im Friedrichshain, Berlin, Germany. Before becoming
an orthopaedic surgeon, Dr. Buettner-Janz was a world-class gymnast.
Having competed
in
both the 1968 and 1972 Olympics, she holds 7 Olympic medals
including 2 gold. She also claimed the coveted title of European
All Around
Champion in 1969 and was World Champion in uneven parallel
bars in 1970.
Dr. Stephen Hochschuler is
Co-founder and chairman of the board of the Texas Back Institute,
and a
founding board member of the Spinal Arthroplasty Society. Dr.
Hochschuler is a
graduate of Columbia College in New York, who received his medical
degree from Harvard Medical School, and he has published two
books for the lay
public: "Back in Shape" and "Treat Your Back Without Surgery"
Dr.
John Regan
Dr. Regan served as a principal at the Texas Back Institute
for 12 years before coming to California to serve as the Director
of the Cedars Sinai Institute for Spinal Disorders from 2000
to 2005. He is internationally recognized as one of the leading
experts in minimally invasive
spine surgery.
He was a principal investigator for
the clinical trial of the SB Charite' III ADR and is currently a principal
investigator for the Cervitech PCM cervical
artificial disc. Dr. Regan is a pioneer and leading authority
in the field of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery, developing
a number of new approaches that reduce patient recovery time
and improve outcomes. He also specializes in thoracic surgery
and was the first to use an new technique called Video-Assisted
Thoracic Spine Surgery (VATS).
Dr.
James Yue teaches
and practices at Yale University. As co-director of the Yale
Spine Center, and Director of the Center for Motion Preserving
and Spine Surgery Study, Dr. Yue is participating in many research
projects including ProDisc Lumbar ADR and ProDisc-C cervical
ADR.
Dr.
Anthony Yeung specializes
in Percutaneous endoscopic surgery of the lumbar spine, having
developed the Yeung Endoscopic Spine System (YESStm),
which includes multi-channel spine endoscopes. He advanced endoscopic
spine surgery during his tenure as president of the American Academy
for Minimally Invasive Spinal Medicine and Surgery and will continue
his efforts as president-elect of the International Intradiscal
Therapy Society.
Dr.
Willem Zeegers is one of the early pioneers to
use the SB Charite' III Artificial Disc Replacement. With
1200 prostheses implanted since 1989, Dr. Zeegers is the
most experienced Artificial Disc Replacement surgeon in the
world. Dr. Zeegers practices at the AlphaKlinik in Munich,
Germany, a leading medical clinic that specializes in innovative
techniques to treat spine, knee, and shoulder problems.
