Hospital for Special Surgery is a hospital in New York City that specializes in orthopedic surgery and the treatment of rheumatologic conditions. Founded in 1863 by James Knight, HSS is the oldest orthopedic hospital in the United States and is consistently ranked as the top orthopedic hospital in the United States. Currently, HSS is ranked #1 in orthopedics, #3 in rheumatology and #22 in pediatric orthopedics by U.S. News & World Report. Bryan Kelly serves as the medical director and surgeon-in-chief, and Louis Shapiro serves as its president and chief executive officer. Areas of expertise at HSS include joint replacement, orthopedic trauma, hand and upper extremity surgery, limb lengthening, foot and ankle surgery, pediatric orthopedics, spine surgery and sports medicine. The hospital performs the most knee replacement surgeries of any hospital in the United States. Trauma surgeons treat fractures and other acute injuries at HSS and work within an Orthopedic Trauma Service that also provides coverage at NewYork-Presbyterian HospitalWeill Cornell Medical Center. HSS physicians with a subspecialty training in the field of spine surgery focus on patients who suffer from congenital or acute spinal disorders as well as from chronic back pain. The sports medicine services at HSS treat athletic injuries of the musculoskeletal system with a special focus on shoulder, elbow, and knee injuries. In addition, orthopedic surgeons at HSS perform limb lengthening, a procedure that uses the body's capacity to create new bone as well as the soft tissues, ligaments, blood vessels, and nerves that surround and support it. HSS also offers professional medical education programs, including continuing medical educationlecture series, conferences and symposia. Services are available in person at the New York facility and remotely worldwide through the Grand Rounds partnership "eConsult" platform. The hospital has 327 active medical staff.
Research
Current clinical trials focus on issues related to lupus and arthritis. In addition to clinical trials, HSS has several research programs that center on the prevention of musculoskeletal diseases. Basic and applied research conducted at the hospital addresses specific problems such as arthritis, injury, osteoporosis, scoliosis, autoimmune diseases such as lupus, and related musculoskeletal diseases as they affect children and adults.
Located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, HSS is built over the Franklin D. Roosevelt drive and partially located in the Belaire building at 535 East 70th Street. Currently HSS has 205 beds and 29 operating rooms. HSS recently completed the construction of a new, ninth floor that adds of new space and of re-engineered and re-designed space. HSS has several specialized centers that focus on specific patients and joint problems, including:
Barbara Volcker Center for Women and Rheumatic Disease
Women's Sports Medicine Center
History
HSS was founded in 1863 as the Hospital for the Ruptured and Crippled in the home of James Knight on Second Avenue, just south of 6th Street. It opened its doors to the first patient, a four-year-old boy with paralysis, on May 1, 1863. There were 28 beds available, all for children. Adults were treated as outpatients. In 1870 it moved to a newly constructed 200-bed building on the corner of 42nd street and Lexington Avenue. There was no operating room until 1888 after a hospital fire. At the turn of the century, it became the target for efforts to expand Grand Central Terminal and negotiations were led by Cornelius Vanderbilt, II, a member of the Board of Managers of the hospital. In 1912, the hospital moved to a six-story building on 42nd Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue that is now the home of the Ford Foundation. The hospital moved to its present location in 1955.
, MD, PhD, resident in orthopedic surgery and fellow in sports medicine, HSS
John Insall, M.D., attending orthopedic surgeon, HSS
David B. Levine, M.D., director of the Department of Orthopedic Surgery, HSS
, D.V.M., M.D., resident and fellow, director of the Laboratory for Comparative Orthopedics, chief of the Sports Medicine Service, and associate scientist, Research Department, HSS
Paula J. Olsiewski, founder and director, Technology Development Office, HSS
Leon Root, M.D., chief of pediatric orthopedics, HSS
