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Washington U. loses three spinal surgeons to New York-Presbyterian

Posted on March 30, 2015

Excerpt from: stltoday.com, By Samantha Liss:

Three renowned Washington University surgeons have been recruited away to run a spine hospital for New York-Presbyterian Hospital.

The departing surgeons are Drs. Lawrence Lenke, Daniel Riew and Ronald Lehman, Jr.

The move, effective July 1, was announced Thursday in a statement from New York-Presbyterian. The hospital described the three physician’s contributions to spinal care and surgery as “transformative.”

The three will also serve as faculty members at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

“Their expertise on spinal injuries, spinal deformities and degenerative spinal diseases has attracted major federal grants as well as patients from around the world,” Dr. Lee Goldman, dean of the faculties of health sciences and medicine and chief executive of Columbia University Medical Center, said in a statement.

The three surgeons currently treat patients at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and other BJC HealthCare facilities.

In a statement released Thursday, the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Washington University School of Medicine said it wished the three “noted spine surgeons” a “fond farewell.”

Lenke, chief of spine surgery for Washington University, has been a faculty member since 1993, according to a statement from spokesman Jim Dryden. Lenke is a past president of Scoliosis Research Society.

Riew, chief of cervical spine surgery, has been with the department since 1996. He is the soon-to-be chairperson of AOSpine International, a medical organization of spine surgeons, and is a past president of the Cervical Spine Research Society.

Lehman joined the faculty last year after receiving advanced training from Lenke. Prior to his role at Washington University, he was the chief of the adult and pediatric spine service at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

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