Dr. Kris Radcliff

Dr. Kris Radcliff is a spine surgeon trained at Harvard and the Rothman fellowship, currently serving as a Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Neurological Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University. Dr. Radcliff focuses on streamlining the treatment of complex spine disorders and traumatic spine injuries, dedicating his practice solely to spine surgery.

Expert in Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery

Dr. Radcliff has specialized knowledge in artificial disc replacement and has conducted thousands of spine surgeries, showcasing his extensive experience. He integrates thoughtful clinical decision-making with advanced, minimally invasive surgical methods, including endoscopic spine surgery and artificial disc replacement techniques.

Harvard-Trained Spine Surgery Specialist

Dr. Radcliff is a highly educated spine specialist with a distinguished academic background. He graduated with honors from Harvard College and earned his medical degree from Duke University School of Medicine on a prestigious Dean’s Tuition Scholarship. His advanced training includes an orthopedic residency at the renowned Baylor College of Medicine within the Texas Medical Center and a clinical spine surgery fellowship at the Rothman Orthopaedic Institute.

About Dr. Kris Radcliff

Dr. Radcliff is fully dedicated to spine surgery, focusing his entire practice on this specialty. As a clinician-scientist, Dr. Radcliff is deeply involved in research, having served as a principal investigator in numerous clinical trials, including studies on cervical total disc replacement, bone stimulators, and basivertebral nerve ablation.

His work aims to develop innovative conservative management strategies for disc-related back pain and explore the use of current biologics for neurogenic pain syndromes.

He has made significant contributions to the field through numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters and is a frequent presenter at national and international spine conferences. Dr. Radcliff is recognized globally as an authority on diagnosing and treating spinal conditions, both surgical and nonsurgical. He has authored or co-authored 76 peer-reviewed publications and 22 textbook chapters, earning multiple research awards for his contributions. In addition to his clinical and research work, Dr. Radcliff actively educates fellow surgeons on advanced spine surgery techniques at major conferences. He also provides consulting services to companies such as Zeiss and Ultrasonics, where he advises on developing and using operative microscopes and ultrasonic bone-cutting tools.

Education

A.B., Harvard University
M.D., Duke University School of Medicine
Residency, Orthopaedic Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine
Fellowship, Spine and Spinal Cord Injury, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital

Titles & Certifications

Professor, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Department of Neurological Surgery, Sidney Kimmel Medical College
Board Certified, American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery

Surgical Specializations

Lumbar Fusion
Sacroiliac Joint Fusion
Cervical Fusion
Cervical Laminoplasty
Microdiscectomy
Endoscopic Spine Surgery
Spinal Stenosis Treatment
Spinal Fracture Stabilization
Disc Replacement
Lumbar Laminectomy

Professional Associations

Society of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery
North American Spine Society
International Society for the Advancement of Spine Surgery (2020 Course Chairman)
American Orthopaedic Association

Publications (Peer Reviewed)

Two-Year Results of the Prospective Spine Treatment Outcomes Study: An Analysis of Complication Rates, Predictors of Their Development, and Effect on Patient-Derived Outcomes at Two Years of Surgical Management of Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy. Gerling MC, Radcliff K, Isaacs R, Bianco K, Jalai CM, Worley NJ, Parmar J, Poorman GW, Horn SR, Moon JY, Arnold PM, Vaccaro AR, Passias P. World Neurosurg Oct 2017 PMID 28673888
Outcome of a Resident Spine Surgical Skills Training Program. Calio BP, Kepler CK, Koerner JD, Rihn JA, Millhouse P, Radcliff KE. Clin Spine Surg Oct 2017 PMID28937469
Which Domains of the ODI Best Predict Change in Physical Function in Patients after Surgery for Degenerative Lumbar Spondylolisthesis. Murphy HA, Warnick E, McGintee R, Nicholson K, Hollern DA, Stawicki C, Tarazona D, Schroeder GD, Woods BI, Kurd MF, Rihn JA, Anderson GD, Kepler CK, Hilibrand AS, Vaccaro AR, Radcliff KE. Spine 2017 Oct. PMID 29028759
Two-Year Results of the Prospective Spine Treatment Outcomes Study: Analysis of Postoperative Clinical Outcomes Between Patients with and without a History of Previous Cervical Spine Surgery. Radcliff K, Jalai C, Vira S, Yang S, Boniello AJ, Bianco K, Oh C, Gerling M, Poorman G, Horn SR, Buza JA 3rd, Isaacs RE, Vaccarro AR, Passias PG. World Neurosurg Sept 2017 PMID 28962949
Novel Index to Quantify the Risk of Surgery in the Setting of Adult Spinal Deformity: A Study on 10,912 Patients from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample. Diebo BG, Jalai CM, Challier V, Maraschalchi BJ, Horn SR, Poorman GW, Bono OJ, Cherkalin D, Worley N, Oh J, Naziri Q, Spitzer A, Radcliff K, Patel A, Lafage V, Paulino CB, Passias PG. Clini Spine Surg Aug 2017 PMID 28169941
The Effect of Hospital Ownership on Health Care Utilization in Orthopaedic Surgery. Schroeder GD, Kurd MF, Kepler CK, Radcliff KE, Maltenfort MG, Murphy H, Rihn JA, Anderson DG, Hilibrand AS, Vaccarro AR. Clin Spine Surg Aug 2017 PMID 28787282
Are patient-reported outcomes predictive of patient satisfaction 5 years after anterior cervical spine surgery? Schroeder GD, Coric D, Kim HJ, Albert TJ, Radcliff KE. Spine J July 2017 PMID 28254671

Honors, Awards, and Memberships

1996-2000 Harvard College Faculty Scholarship
1996 National Merit Scholarship, National Merit Finalist
2000-2004 Duke University Dean’s Tuition Scholarship
2002-2003 Research Fellowship, Stanley J. Sarnoff Endowment for Science
2007 Baylor College of Medicine Outstanding Resident Educator House Staff Award 2008 AOA Resident Leadership Forum Representative
2009 AOA Emerging Leaders Forum Member
2011 Leonard Goldstein Award Winner. The incidence of lumbar adjacent segment disease: A comparison of single level fusion procedures. Scoliosis Research Society
2011 Best Poster Award Scoliosis Research Society: “Does Multilevel Laminectomy Increase Risk of Adjacent Segment Spinal Disease”
2011 Best Paper Section North American Spine Society “Do Epidural Steroid Injections Affect the Outcome of Lumbar Stenosis?”
2011 Best Paper Section North American Spine Society “Predictors of Reoperation: A Subgroup Analysis of SPORT?”
2011 Best Poster Section North American Spine Society “Neurological Injury Following Odontoid Nonunion”
2014 Best Paper Cervical Spine Research Society “Costs of Cervical Disc Replacement versus Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion for Treatment of Single-Level Cervical Disc Disease: An Analysis of the Blue Health Intelligence Database for Acute and Long-Term Costs and ”
2016 North American Spine Society Best Paper “Does Sagittal Balance Influence the Surgical Outcomes of Patients with Cervical Myelopathy?”
2016 North American Spine Society Best Paper “Correlating Patient-Reported Outcomes to Patient Satisfaction in Patients’ with a Lumbar Disc Herniation”
2016 North American Spine Society Best Paper “The Total Cost to the Health Care System for the Treatment of Cervical Myelopathy”
2018 Top 40 under 40, North American Spine Society
2019 CSRS 1st Place Clinical Research Award Winner Presentation #66 The Real Costs of ACDF: A Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing Analysis
2020 ISASS Best Paper Award Nominee: Patient Outcomes Following Short-segment Lumbar Fusion Are Not Affected by PI-LL Mismatch
2021 ISASS Top Article: Final Long-Term Reporting from a Randomized Controlled IDE Trial for Lumbar Artificial Discs in Single-Level Degenerative Disc Disease: 7-Year Results
2022 Top Doc