Award Winners

2023 Research Award Papers

1st Place Basic Science
Ex vivo gene therapy using human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural stem/progenitor cells to deliver synaptic organizer CPTX for spinal cord injury: Yusuke Saijo, MD

1st Place Clinical Research
Surgical outcomes of extensive dome-like laminoplasty using en bloc resection of the C2 inner lamina for patients with severe cord compression behind the C2 body: Kyung-Chung Kang, MD

2nd Place Clinical Research
Adjunctive Use of Bone Growth Stimulation Increases Cervical Spine Fusion Rates in Patients at Risk for Pseudarthrosis: Vikas Patel, MD

3rd Place Clinical Research 
Factors associated with repeat surgery in cervical ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament: An 8-year follow-up study: Hyun Jun Jang, MD

1st Place Resident/Fellow Research 
Opioid-free Analgesia is Safe and Effective in Anterior Cervical Spine Surgery: A Randomized Controlled Trial: Michael Schallmo, MD

2nd Place Resident/Fellow Research
MRI vertebral bone quality correlates with interbody cage subsidence after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion: James Bernatz, MD

3rd Place Resident/Fellow Research
Cervical Spine Surgery following COVID-19 Infection: When is it Safe to Proceed? Justin Chan, MD

4th Place Resident/Fellow Research 
Anterior Cervical Disc Replacement (ACDR) versus Minimally Invasive Posterior Cervical Foraminotomy (MI-PCF) in the Treatment of Cervical Radiculopathy: A 5-Year Retrospective Analysis: Stuart Changoor, MD

Clinical Research General Poster Award
Assessing the Economic Benefit of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) Protocols in Adult Cervical Deformity Patients: Is the Initial Additive Cost of Protocols Offset by Clinical Gains: Peter Tretiakov, BS

Basic Science General Poster Award
Pretreatment with hepatocyte growth factor enhances human iPSC-NS/PC transplantation-mediated functional recovery after spinal cord injury: Yu Suematsu, MD

1st Place Resident/Fellow Poster Award
Intraoperative ultrasound using a linear (minimally invasive) transducer during anterior cervical surgery: description of a new technique: Timothy Chryssikos, MD, PhD

2nd Place Resident/Fellow Poster Award
Comparison of complication frequency after anterior cervical spine surgery - CSM vs OPLL: Motonori Hashimoto, MD 

2022 Research Award Papers

1st Place Basic Science
Serum GFAP and NF-L are Biomarkers of Injury Severity and Predictors of Recovery After Acute Cervical Spinal Cord Injury: Brian K. Kwon, MD, PhD, FRCSC

2nd Place Basic Science
Spinal Cord Reconstitution of Chronic Complete Injury by Hepatocyte Growth Factor-Releasing Scaffold and Human Stem Cell Enhances Functional Recovery: Shogo Hashimoto, MD

3rd Place Basic Science
Circulating microRNAs May be Predictive of Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy: Srikanth N. Divi, MD

1st Place Clinical Research
Long-term Outcomes of Vertebral Body Sliding Osteotomy for the Treatment of Cervical Myelopathy: A Minimum of 5-year Follow-up: Dong-Ho Lee, MD, PhD

2nd Place Clinical Research
A Multi-Center, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Double-Blinded Trial of Efficacy and Safety of Riluzole in Acute Spinal Cord Injury Study (RISCIS): Michael G. Fehlings, MD, PhD, FRCSC, FACS

3rd Place Clinical Research
Contemporary Practice Patterns in the Treatment of Cervical Stenosis and Central Cord Syndrome: A Survey of the Cervical Spine Research Society: Erick Kazarian, MD

1st Place Resident/Fellow Research
Do Patients with Preoperative Marijuana Use have Similar Outcomes following Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusions?: Mark J. Lambrechts, MD

2nd Place Resident/Fellow Research
Comparing Those Most Satisfied Versus Least Satisfied Following Surgery for Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy: Are there Differences in Baseline Characteristics?: Andrew K. Chan, MD

3rd Place Resident/Fellow Research
Motorized Robotic Cervical Traction: Proof of Concept: Brandon A. Sherrod, MD

1st General E-Poster
Impact of social deprivation on physical and mental health outcomes in patients following cervical spine fusion surgery: Justin K. Zhang, BS

1st Resident/Fellow E-Poster
Severe Semispinalis Cervicis Sarcopenia is Associated with Worse Patient Reported Outcomes following Laminoplasty for Myelopathy: Zachariah W. Pinter, MD

2021 Research Award Papers

1st Place Basic Science
Posterior Cervical Spinal Fusion Assemblies Intended to Cross the Cervicothoracic Junction: A Mechanical Analysis: David B. Bumpass, MD

2nd Place Basic Science
Do Inflammatory Cytokines Affect Patient Outcomes after ACDF?: Brian A. Karamian, MD

3rd Place Basic Science
Cervical Total Disc Replacement: Available Implant Size Matters: Richard D. Guyer, MD

1st Place Clinical Research
No Difference in Reoperation Rates in Posterior Cervical Fusions Stopping at C7 versus T1/T2 for Nonunions (Operative Nonunions): A cohort of 875 Patients - Part 2: Jacob H. Fennessy, MD

2nd Place Clinical Research
Predictive Factors for the Aggravation of Cervical Alignment after Posterior Cervical Foraminotomy: Hyung Rae Lee, MD 

3rd Place Clinical Research
Racial Disparities in Patients Undergoing Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion: A Multi-Site Study: Comron Saifi, MD

1st Place Resident/Fellow Research
The influence of timing of surgical decompression for acute spinal cord injury: a pooled analysis of individual patient data in 1,548 cases: Jetan H. Badhiwala, MD, PhD

2nd Place Resident/Fellow Research
Simulated Bundled Payments for Four Common Surgical Approaches to Treat Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy: A Consideration to Break the Clinical Equipoise: Nikhil Jain, MD

3rd Place Resident/Fellow Research
Comparison of Clinical Guidelines for Reimbursement for Intra-Operative Neuromonitoring During Spine Surgery in the United States: Daniel Berman, MD

1st General E-Poster
Automated detection of cervical spinal cord compression and the reliability of morphometric parameters extracted with the Spinal Cord Toolbox: Magda MH. Horáková, MD

1st Resident/Fellow E-Poster
Modified Kappa-line correlates better with neurological outcomes than modified K-line after laminoplasty for cervical myelopathy caused by ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament: Dong-Ho Lee, MD, PhD

2020 Research Award Papers

1st Place Basic Science
Efficacy of clinical hiPSC-OPC-enriched NS/PCs for transplantation in the subacute phase of spinal cord injury: Yasuhiro Kamata, MD

2nd Place Basic Science
Expression analysis of susceptibility genes for ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament: Shuji Watanabe, MD

3rd Place Basic Science
Characterization of Basal and Cytokine Stimulated Biomarker Profiles of Degenerative Cervical and Lumbar Fusion Explants ex-vivo: Don Moore, MD

1st Place Clinical Research
A randomized controlled multi-center trial comparing ventral and dorsal surgery for CSM: 2-year results: Zoher Ghogawala, MD

2nd Place Clinical Research
Intrathecal administration of recombinant human hepatocyte growth factor for acute traumatic cervical spinal cord injury: double-blinded, placebo-controlled and randomized phase I/II study: Kazuya Kitamura, MD

3rd Place Clinical Research
Cervical disc arthroplasty versus anterior cervical discectomy and fusion: 10-year outcomes of a prospective, randomized clinical trial at three sites: Pierce Nunley, MD

1st Place Resident/Fellow Research
Early versus (<24 hrs) Late (>=24 hrs) Surgical Decompression for Central Cord Syndrome: A Propensity Score-Matched Analysis: Jetan Badhiwala, MD

2nd Place Resident/Fellow Research
Does Screw Length for Primary Two-level ACDF Influence Pseudarthrosis Risk?: Nathan Lee, MD

3rd Place Resident/Fellow Research
Publicly Available Online Resources for ACDF are not Easily Read or Understood by the Average Patient: Christopher Lindsay, MD

1st Place E-Poster
Pseudoarthrosis Following Long Segment Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion: Incidence, Risk Factors, and Associated Clinical Outcomes: Joshua Bell, MD

2nd Place E-Poster
Development of Risk Stratification Predictive Models for Cervical Deformity Surgery: Peter Passias, MD

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2019 Research Award Papers

1st Place Basic Science Research Award
Inhibiting Spinal Phospholipase A2 Prevents Pain & Attenuates Spinal Neuron Activity After Nerve Root Compression: Beth A Winkelstein, PhD

2nd Place Basic Science Research Award
Lotus Over Expression Enhanced The Motor Function Recovery Following Ips-Ns/Pc Transplantation: Shuhei Ito, MD

3rd Place Basic Science Research Award
Involvement of Autophagy In Human Cervical Spine Degenerated And Herniated Discs: Takashi Yurube, MD, PhD

1st Place Clinical Research Award
Nonoperative Management of Asymptomatic Cervical Spinal Stenosis: A Long-Term Follow-Up Study: Michael P Kelly, MD, MSc

2nd Place Clinical Research Award
The Effect of ACDF or Arthroplasty on Cervicogenic Headaches: A Post-Hoc Analysis Of A Prospective, Multicenter Study With 10-Year Follow-Up: K Daniel Riew, MD

3rd Place Clinical Research Award
Microendoscopic Laminotomy Versus Conventional Laminoplasty For Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy – A 5-Year Follow-Up Study: Akihito Minamide, MD, PhD

1st Place Resident Fellow Research Award
A Deep Learning Model for Detection Of Cervical Spinal Cord Compression In MRI Scans: Zamir Merali, MD

2nd Place Resident Fellow Research Award
Effect Of Local Retropharyngeal Steroids On Fusion Rate After Anterior Cervical Discectomy And Fusion: Steven Wahlmeier, MD

3rd Place Resident Fellow Research Award
Cervical Spine Fractures: Who Really Needs CT Angiography?: Mitchell S Fourman MD

1st Place E-Poster Award
Proton Pump Inhibitor Use Affects Pseudarthrosis Rates and Influences Patient Reported Outcomes: John Mangan MD, MHA

2nd Place E-Poster Award
A Prospective, Psychometric Validation of NIH PROMIS Physical Function, Pain Interference And Upper Extremity Cat In Cervical Spine Patients: Successes And Key Limitations: Sravisht Iyer, MD

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2018 Research Award Papers

1st Place Basic Science
Transplantation of Neural Stem/Progenitor Cell Derived from Human iPS Cells with Gamma-Secretase Inhibitor Treatment Promotes Motor Functional Recovery and Axonal Regrowth After Chronic Spinal Cord Injury: Toshiki Okubo, MD, PhD

2nd Place Basic Science
Peptide Amphiphile Nanoscaffolds Enhance the Delivery of Rhbmp-2 in a Rabbit Spine Fusion Model: Ryan Lubbe

3rd Place Basic Science
NF-kB Inhibitor Reduces the Inflammatory Response and Improves Bone Formation in Rhbmp-2-Mediated Spine Fusion: Phillip H. Behrens IV, MD

1st Place Clinical
Effect of Cervical Decompression Surgery on Spine and Lower Extremity Biomechanics in Adult Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy Patients: Ram Haddas, PhD

2nd Place Clinical
Comparative Analysis Between Early Surgical and Conservative Treatment of the Incomplete Cervical Spinal Cord Injury Without Major Fracture and Dislocation in the Preexisting Cervical Spinal Stenosis: Jung-Ki Ha, MD

3rd Place Clinical
The Impact of K-Line (-) in the Neck-Flexion Position on Patient-Based Outcomes After Cervical Laminoplasty for Patients with Ossification of the Posterior Longitudinal Ligament: Atsushi Kimura, MD, PhD

1st Place Resident/Fellow
The Impact of Time to Surgical Decompression on Clinical Outcomes in Patients with Acute Traumatic Central Cord Syndrome: Jetan H Badhiwala, MD

2nd Place Resident/Fellow
30-Day Preoperative Opioid Dosage Predicts 12-Month Satisfaction in Cervical Spine Surgery: Jeffrey Hills, MD

3rd Place Resident/Fellow
Smart Human Neural Stem Cells to Degrade Scar and Optimize Regeneration After Traumatic Cervical Spinal Cord Injury: Christopher S. Ahuja, MD

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2017 Research Award Papers

1st Place Basic Science
Neural Stem Cell Mediated Recovery is Enhanced by Chondroitinase ABC Pretreatment in Chronic Cervical Spinal Cord Injury: Hidenori Suzuki, MD, PhD

2nd Place Basic Science
Single-Level Cervical Arthrodesis Increases Adjacent Segment Midrange Motion: William Anderst, PhD

3rd Place Basic Science
Enhancement of Neurological Recovery and Attenuation of Inflammation in Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy With Intravenous Igg: Wenru Yu, MD

1st Place Clinical
The Real Costs of ACDF: A Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing Analysis: Gregory D. Schroeder, MD

2nd Place Clinical
The Impact of Local Steroid Application on Dysphagia Following an Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion: Preliminary Results of a Prospectively, Randomized, Single Blind Trial: Kern Singh, MD

3rd Place Clinical
Distal Junctional Kyphosis (Djk) After Cervical Deformity Surgery: Analysis with In-Construct Measurements: Themistocles S. Protopsaltis, MD

1st Place Resident/Fellow
Favorable Prognosis for Significant Preoperative Upper Extremity Weakness Following Elective Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion: Christopher K. Kepler, MD, MBA

2nd Place Resident/Fellow
Investigating the Utility of Intra-Operative Neurophysiological Monitoring for Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion: Analysis of Over 140,000 Cases from a National Inpatient Dataset: Jetan H. Badhiwala, MD

3rd Place Resident/Fellow
Comparison of Preoperative and Postoperative Cervical Lordosis in Patients Undergoing Cervical Laminoplasty – Effect of C3 Laminectomy: Philip M Sinatra, MD

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2016 Research Award Papers

1st Place Basic Science
Directly Reprogrammed Human Neural Precursor Cells – A Novel and Translationally Relevant Source for Cell Replacement Therapy in Spinal Cord Injury: Narihito Nagoshi, MD, PhD

2nd Place Basic Science
Therapeutic Impact of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Derived Neural Progenitor Cells for the Treatment of Cervical Spinal Cord Injury: Michael G. Fehlings, MD, PhD

3rd Place Basic Science
Delayed Surgical Decompression for Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy Correlates with Reperfusion and Excessive Activation of the Immune System: Pia M. Vidal, PhD

1st Place Clinical
Is There Value in Retrospective, 90 Day Bundled Payment Models for Cervical Spine Procedures? Bryce A. Van Doren, MA, MPH

2nd Place Clinical
Is Cervical Bracing Necessary after Single- and Multi-Level Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion? A Prospective Randomized Study: Samuel C. Overley, MD;

3rd Place Clinical
Risk Factors for Failure of Non-Operative Treatment of Unilateral Cervical Facet Fractures: Amir Michael Abtahi, MD

1st Place Resident/Fellow
The Effect of Local vs. Intravenous Steroids on Dysphagia and Dysphonia following Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion (ACDF): A Single-Blinded, Prospective, Randomized Control Trial: Tyler J. Jenkins, MD

2nd Place Resident/Fellow
A Health Economic and Patient-Centered Analysis on the Value of Surgery for Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy: Strong Support for Surgical Intervention: Christopher D. Witiw, MD

3rd Place Resident/Fellow
Should Asymptomatic Levels with MRI Abnormalities be Included in an ACDF Construct? A Long-Term MRI Analysis: Marcus D. Mazur, MD

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2015 Research Award Papers

1st Place Basic Science
Transplantation Of Human Ips Cell-Derived Oligodendrocyte Precursor Cells Enriched Neural Stem/Progenitor Cells In Chronic And Subacute Spinal Cord Injury ~ Soya Kawabata, MD

2nd Place Basic Science
Surgical Decompression In An Experimental Model Of Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy Induces A Neuroinflammatory Response: Implications For Perioperative Clinical Management ~ Pia M. Vidal, BS, PhD

3rd Place Basic Science
Total Disc Replacement Using Tissue-Engineered Intervertebral Discs: In Vivo Outcome In A Canine Model. ~ Yu Moriguchi, MD, PhD

1st Place Clinical
Prevalence And Imaging Characteristics Of Asymptomatic And Symptomatic Spondylotic Cervical Spinal Cord Compression In General Population ~ Josef Bednarik, MD, PhD

2nd Place Clinical
Predictive Risk Factors of Cervical Spine Instabilities in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Prospective Minimum 10-Year Multicenter Cohort Study ~ Yoshiki Terashima, MD

3rd Place Clinical
What Is The Fate Of The Pseudarthrosis Detected At 1 Year After Anterior Cervical Discectomy And Fusion? ~ Jung-Ki Ha, MD

1st Place Resident/Fellow
Cost Effectiveness Of Operative Vs. Non-Operative Treatment Of Geriatric Type-Ii Odontoid Fracture ~Brendan T. Higgins, MD

2nd Place Resident/Fellow
Laminoplasty Versus Laminectomy And Fusion To Treat Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy: Outcomes Of The Prospective Multicenter Aospine North America And International Csm Studies ~ Carlo Santaguida, MD

3rd Place Resident/Fellow
Cost Utility Analysis Of Anterior Cervical Discectomy And Fusion For Degenerative Spine Disease In Elderly Population ~ Silky Chotai, MD