Andre D. Shaffer, M.D. Board Certified Fellowship Trained
Orthopedic Surgeon Hip & Spine SpecialistDr. Andre Shaffer is a board certified orthopedic surgeon who specializes in surgical, procedural, and non-surgical management of spine, pelvis, and traumatic orthopedic conditions, including degenerative and deformity conditions of the spine and pelvis. When surgery is indicated, Dr. Shaffer emphasizes the use of minimally invasive surgical techniques in his spine and trauma practice.
Born and raised in Seattle, Washington, Dr. Shaffer was a lifeguard and Seattle Fire Fighter prior to switching to a career in medicine. He completed medical school at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City. After completion of an Orthopedic surgery residency at Hospital for Special Surgery, Dr. Shaffer completed an Orthopedic Trauma Fellowship with the Harvard Orthopedic Trauma Initiative at Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. He then returned to Seattle to complete a Surgical Preservation of the Hip and Pelvis fellowship with the Hansjorg Wyss Hip and Pelvis Center with Dr. Keith Mayo.
Finally, he completed a combined Orthopedic and Neurosurgical spine fellowship at the CORE Institute in Phoenix, Arizona. Dr. Shaffer is board certified by the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery and belongs to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS), AO Trauma and AO Spine societies, North American Spine Society (NASS), Orthopedic Trauma Association (OTA), as well as the International Society for Advancement of Spine Surgery (ISASS) and the Society for Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery (SMISS).
After many years of fellowships and private practice, Dr. Shaffer is glad to be back in Seattle, treating the community that he has known and loved.
Education
- 9/2022- 9/2023
- CORE Institute / Banner University Medical Center, Phoenix, AZ
Combined Orthopaedic / Neurosurgical Fellowship in Spine Surgery
- 8/2018-8/2019
- Hansjorg Wyss Center for Hip and Pelvis Surgery, Seattle, WA
Fellowship in Hip Preservation Surgery with
Keith Mayo, MD and Cara Beth Lee, MD
- 8/2017 – 8/2018
- Harvard Orthopaedic Trauma Initiative, Boston, MA
Massachusetts General Hospital / Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Fellowship in Orthopaedic Trauma Surgery
Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, New York
Orthopaedic Surgery Residency
- 6/2013-6/2017
- New York-Presbyterian Hospital / Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, New York
Clinical Associate in Orthopaedic Surgery
- 6/2012 - 6/2013
- New York-Presbyterian Hospital / New York Weill Cornell Medical Center
Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, New York
Intern in General Surgery
- 8/2007 - 5/2012
- Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, New York
Doctor of Medicine
- 6/2010 - 6/2011
- Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, New York
Certificate in Translational Clinical Research / NIH K2 Program
- 1/2003 - 8/2005
- University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
Bachelor of Science - Biochemistry
Minor - Applied Computational and Mathematical Sciences
- 1/2000 – 4/2000
- Seattle Fire Department / Washington State Fire Academy, Seattle,
Washington
Firefighter 1 / EMT-Basic Training
Work Experience
- 10/2022 – 09/2023
- Attending Orthopaedic Spine, Hip, and Trauma Surgeon, Orthopaedic Specialists of Seattle Attending Orthopaedic Trauma Surgeon, Section Chief Orthopaedic Surgery,
- 9/2019- 09/2023
- Christus Spohn Shoreline Hospital
- 1/2000- 8/2007
- Firefighter / EMT, Seattle Fire Department Responsible for responding to a spectrum of life-threatening emergencies – fires, medical, municipal infrastructure, car extrications and trauma resuscitations – protection of life, property, and environment in dynamic, time, mission, and safety-critical situations. Responsible for multiple roles on different units.
Board Certifications & Licenses
- Board Certified in Orthopaedic Surgery – American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, 7/24/2022 – 12/31/2032
- Arizona Board of Medicine – License #66323, Active, Issued: 5/16/2022 – 1/24/2024, Inactive
- Texas Board of Medicine – License #S3455, Active, Issued: 8/29/2022
- Washington Department of Health, Medical Board – License #60858779, Issued: 7/17/2018 Active
- Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine – License # 270904 Issued: 6/15/2017 – 9/9/2018, Inactive
- New York Board of Medicine – License # 272861, Issued - 10/31/2013 – 8/31/2019, Inactive
Professional Society Memberships
Research and Laboratory Experience
Hospital for Special Surgery – Orthopaedic Trauma Service 6/2013 – 6/2017
David L. Helfet MD, Dean G Lorich MD, David S Wellman MD
Participated in a variety of research projects focusing on clinical outcomes in orthopaedic trauma including anatomic/radiographic study of calcaneal vascularity, study of ankle fracture reduction outcomes, study of tibial plateau reduction outcomes, and study of patellar fracture fixation outcomes.
Hospital for Special Surgery / Weill Cornell Medical College 6/2010 – 5/2011
NIH TL-1 Training Program, Office of Dr. Joseph M. Lane
Studied effects of monoclonal antibody to Sclerostin on spinal fusion using a posterolateral rat spinal fusion model. Also studied the effects of serum vitamin D concentration on functional outcomes in total hip arthroplasty patients as measured using physical function tests and self-reported questionnaires. Also characterizing the postsurgical outcomes of a series of Hernigou procedures performed for patients with non-infected delayed union and nonunited fractures. Also attended classes in fundamentals of clinical research, biostatistics, scientific journalism and grant writing, clinical trial design, and bioinformatics.
Teaching Experience
Fire Cadet Instructor – Seattle Fire Department 1/2001 – 8/2007
Responsible for instruction of Fire Cadets – ages 16 and up. Taught fire-fighting techniques, emergency medical skills, and helped implement and organize week-long mini-fire academies for youth interested in exploring the fire service as a career.
Leadership/Committee Experience
- Hospital for Special Surgery, Medical Student Advisory Committee
- 8/2012 – 6/2017
- Hospital for Special Surgery, Health Informatics Management Committee
- 6/2016 – 6/2017
- Medical School Executive Committee, Vice President
- 10/2007-10/2008
Volunteer Experience
New York Public School Athletic League, Curtis High School Team MD 8/2014 – 6/2017
Served as sideline medical coverage for public high school football games. Evaluated injuries to adolescent players before, during, and after games. Arranged appropriate medical follow up as necessary. Worked in conjunction with athletic trainers, coaches, parents, and attending physicians.
Bibliography
Unnanuntana, A., Jeffrey E. Mait, Andre D. Shaffer, Brandon P. Hirsch, Owolabi A. Shonuga, and Joseph M. Lane. "Materials in Fracture Fixation." Comprehensive Biomaterials. 1st ed. London: Elsevier Science, 2011. Print.
Unnanuntana, A; Mait, JE; Shaffer, AD; Mancuso C; Lane, JM. “Performance-Based Tests and Self-reported Questionnaires Provide Distinct Information for the Preoperative Evaluation of Total Hip Arthroplasty Patients”. J Arthroplasty 2012 May; 27(5):770-5.e1.
Donnelly E, Meredith DS, Nguyen JT, Gladnick BP, Rebolledo BJ, Shaffer AD, Lorich DG, Lane JM, Boskey AL. Reduced cortical bone compositional heterogeneity with bisphosphonate treatment in postmenopausal women with intertrochanteric and subtrochanteric fractures. J Bone Miner Res. 2012 Mar;27(3):672-8.
Garner, MR; Fabricant, PD; Schottel PC; Berkes, MB; Shaffer, AD; Ni A, Lorich, DG. “Standard perioperative imaging modalities are unreliable in assessing articular congruity of ankle fractures.” J Orthop Trauma. 2015 Apr; 29(4):e161-5.
Warner, SJ; Shaffer, AD; Lazaro, LE; Schottel P; Helfet D; Lorich DG. “Multiplanar Fixation for Patella Fractures using a Low Profile Mesh Plate”. Journal of Orthopaedic Trauma. 2015 Dec; 29(12):e504-10.
Garner MR; Gausden EB; Fabricant PD; Warner SJ; Shaffer AD; Lorich DG. “Bone Density Does Not Correlate With Clinical Outcomes After Open Reduction and Internal Fixation of Tibial Plateau Fractures”. Arch Orthop Trauma Surg. 2017 June; 137(6):755-760.
Donders JC, Klinger CE, Shaffer AD, Lazaro LE, Thacher RR, Dyke JP, Wellman DS, Helfet DL, Lorich DG. “Quantitative and Qualitative Assessment of the Relative Arterial Contributions to the Calcaneus.” Foot and Ankle International 2018 May; 39(5)604-612.
Professional Conference Presentations Warner SJ; Garner MR; Gausden EB; Shaffer AD; Levack AE; Helfet DL; Lorich DG. “Reduction of the Ankle Syndesmosis: Indications, Techniques, Assessments, and Outcomes.” AAOS 2016 Scientific Exhibit. Accepted AAOS Annual Meeting March 1-5, 2016 Orlando. Florida.
Warner SJ; Levack AE; Lazaro LE; Garner MR; Gausden EB; Shaffer AD; Helfet DL; Lorich DG. “The Evolution of Patella Fracture Fixation.” AAOS 2016 Scientific Exhibit. Accepted. AAOS Annual Meeting March 1-5, 2016 Orlando. Florida.
Decreased Bone Density in Geriatric Patients Does Not Lead to Inferior Outcomes After Open Reduction and Internal Fixation of Tibial Plateau Fractures. Garner MR; Gausden EG; Warner SJ; Shaffer AD; Lorich DG. Orthopaedic Trauma Association 2015 Annual Meeting October 7-10, 2015 San Diego, CA.
Reliability and Sensitivity of Fluoroscopic and Radiographic Assessment of Articular Congruency in Operatively Treated Ankle Fractures is Poor. Garner MR; Fabricant PD; Schottel PC; Berkes MB; Shaffer AD; Ni A; Lorich DG. Orthopaedic Trauma Association 2014 Annual Meeting October 15 – 18, 2014 Tampa, Florida.
A Correlation Study between Performance-Based Tests with WOMAC Index and SF-36 in Pre-operative Total Hip Arthroplasty Patients Mait, JE; Unnanuntana, A; Shaffer, AD; Rebolledo, BJ; Lyman, S; Cornell, CN; Sculco, TP; Mancuso, C; Lane, JM. Orthopaedics Research Society 2011 Annual Meeting January 13-16th, 2011 Long Beach, CA
Sclerostin Antibody Enhances Spine Fusion in a Rat Posterolateral Transverse Process Fusion Model: Preliminary Results. Shaffer, AD; Shonuga BS; Hirsch BP; Mait JE; Cunningham MC; Lane JM. American Society of Bone Mineral Research 2011 Annual Meeting September 16-20, 2011. San Diego, CA
Awards
- 2017 - Thomas P. Sculco Award (HSS)
- 2011 – President’s Poster Competition Award (ASBMR Annual Meeting 2011)
Other
Shaffer, Andre D. "What's Up Doc - What You Need To Know For a Med School Interview." Cornell Daily Sun [Ithaca, NY] 11 Feb. 2011, Opinion sec. Cornell Daily Sun. 11 Feb. 2011. Web. http://cornellsun.com/section/opinion/content/2011/02/11/what-you-need-know-med-school-interview.
2017 – Nottingham Fracture Forum Participant – Presented regarding “Early Appropriate Care of Polytrauma”
Interests
Professional
- Fracture fixation biomechanics and implant design
- Robotic/computer assisted surgery, minimally invasive surgery
- Hip and Knee cartilage preservation, osteotomies
- Hospital Architecture
