Physician Biography | Dr. Wong's Team | Presentations / Research | Patient Forms | Articles

Dr. Wong's Presentations / Research

• David A. Wong, MD, MSc, FRCS(C), Anant Kumar, MD, Sanjay Jatana, MD, Gary Ghiselli, MD, Katherine Wong. Neurologic impairment from ectopic bone in the lumbar canal: a potential complication of off-label PLIF/TLIF use of bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2). The Spine Journal (2007)

Purpose: The purpose was to report five cases of ectopic bone in the canal associated with PLIF/TLIF off-label use of BMP-2 potentially contributing to abnormal neurologic findings. Read more.

• David A. Wong, MD, MSc, FRCS(C), Anant Kumar, MD, John A. McCulloch, MD, FRCS(C). Heads up on herbals. The Spine Journal 1 (2001) 446–447

Overview: The use of nonprescription “herbal” medicinal supplements has been steadily increasing in North America for several years. These preparations are by no means “innocuous.” Both patients and physicians need to be aware of their potential side effects. For surgeons, one must be particularly alert for use of “herbals” that can influence coagulation and the effects of which are not always reflected in standard screening tests. A specific case focused our attention on this issue in rather dramatic fashion. Read more.

• David A. Wong, MD, MSc, FRCS(C). Rationing Treatments Based on Their Cost per QALY. American Medical Association Journal of Ethics April 2011, Volume 13, Number 4: 220-223.

Overview: Dr. Jackson is an orthopedic surgeon with an excellent record for good medical care and patient satisfaction. Over the last 5 years, her hospital’s financial security has declined and administrators have been looking at various options for reducing the cost of care. They have tentatively decided to phase out treatments and services that cost more than a certain amount per quality-adjusted life year (QALY). This will enable them, they feel, to provide the most health for their dollar, so to speak. Read more.

• David A. Wong, Brendan Lewis, James Herndon, Claude Martin, Jr. and Robert Brooks. Patient Safety in North America: Beyond "Operate Through Your Initials" and "Sign Your Site." J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2009;91:1534-1541. doi:10.2106/JBJS.H.01462

Overview: Orthopaedic surgeons in Canada and the United States have been leaders in the patient safety movement1-8. Early efforts addressed wrong-site surgery. Both the ‘‘Operate Through Your Initials’’ program9, introduced in 1993 by the Canadian Orthopaedic Association (COA), and the ‘‘Sign Your Site’’ initiative 10,11, introduced in 1998 by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), predate the 2000 publication of To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System by the Institute of Medicine12. Read more.

• Gary Ghiselli, MD, Sanjay Jatana, MD, David Wong, MD, MSc, FRCS (C), Nicholas Wharton, MD. Pseudarthrosis in the Cervical Spine: What Is the Gold Standard? CT Scan versus Flexion Extension Quantitative Motion Analysis With Intraoperative Correlation. Proceedings of the NASS 21st Annual Meeting / The Spine Journal 6 (2006) 1S–161S.

Purpose: Attempt to establish a gold standard for determining pseudoarthrosis in anterior cervical fusion. Read more.

• David A. Wong and Laura L. Forese. Economic Credentialing and Physician Performance Measures: They Know Who You Are. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2010;92:1305-1311. doi:10.2106/JBJS.I.01310

The impact of massive health reform looms large in the United States1. During the health-care debate, orthopaedic surgeons found politicians, health policy analysts, and health economists talking in a somewhat unfamiliar lexicon. Suddenly, data derived from the areas of economic credentialing and physician performance measures are being incorporated into major national health-care policy2 and are influencing policies and procedures down to the individual hospital level3. Read more.

• David A. Wong, MD. In Memoriam John Alexander McCulloch 1938–2002. The Spine Journal 2 (2002) 156

Only rarely can it be truly said that an individual passes from this world at the absolute “top of his game.” Nevertheless, this statement unquestionably applies to our colleague, mentor and friend, Dr. John A. McCulloch. John died March 14, 2002, from a head injury sustained 13 days earlier from a fall while skiing at Breckenridge, Colorado. He had enjoyed a family home there for more than a decade. He was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. Read more.

• David A. Wong, MD, MSc, FRCS(C), Betsy Annesser, DPt, Tim Birney, MD, Roderick Lamond, MD, FRCS(C), Anant Kumar, MD, Stephen Johnson, MD, Sanjay Jatana, MD, Gary Ghiselli, MD. Incidence of contraindications to total disc arthroplasty: a retrospective review of 100 consecutive fusion patients with a specific analysis of facet arthrosis. The Spine Journal 7 (2007) 5–11

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to repeat the Hospital for Special Surgery study in another cohort of fusion patients. Read more.

Dr. Wong is a frequent guest lecturer.

• Dr. Wong presented at the Rocky Mountain Regional Educational Symposium entitled HOT TOPICS IN BONE HEALTH & POST FRACTURE MANAGEMENT in June 2013. This symposium is co-provided by The American Orthopaedic Association and the National Association of Orthopaedic Nurses.


• Dr. Wong is a frequent guest lecturer at the Advanced Center for Spinal Microsurgery at Presbyterian/St. Luke's

Lecture topics include:

• "Sorting out radiculopathy vs. fibromyalgia vs. non organic pain vs. malingering"
• "What is the 1/5 strength acute foot drop from? Medium sized recurrent HNP L4-5 or severe critical stenosis L3-4 mostly facet hypertrophy?"