Addisu Mesfin, M.D.

I manage the following conditions and work with the patient to achieve their goal:

1. Degenerative conditions: disc herniations & stenosis (cervical/thoracic/lumbar), spondylolisthesis, OPLL, ankylosing spondylitis, DISH, cervical/thoracic myelopathy

2. Spinal deformity: Congenital cervical fusion (Klippel-Feil), Scoliosis, kyphosis, isthmic spondylolisthesis, Syndromic spinal conditions (Neurofibromatosis, Marfan's) and Skeletal dysplasias. My interests in deformity include adult spinal deformity and revision surgeries needing osteotomies.

3. Spine tumors: My areas of special interest include minimally invasive management of metastatic spine tumors, total en bloc resection of primary spine tumors (pediatric/adult), and operative and non-operative management of pathologic spine fractures. I am passionate about the application of research and innovation toward the improvement of care for spine tumor patients. Recently, we published our research demonstrating the use of Vancomycin antibiotic powder during spine tumor surgery resulted in a 50% decrease in wound infections. I am active in an international spine tumor group (AO Tumor Knowledge Forum) and work with this group to advance the care of spine tumor patients. I treat primary and metastatic tumors of the spine form occiput to sacrum

4. Spine trauma: fractures from occiput to sacrum and spinal cord injury

5. Sports spine: injuries to the spine arising from sporting or training injuries

Professional Background

Dr. Mesfin is the Division Chief of Spine Surgery and an Associate 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 150 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.

Research