Meet David L. Helfet, MD - Orthopaedic Surgeon

• DR. HELFET:
212-606-1888

• DR. LORICH:
212-746-4509

• DR. WEILAND:
212-606-1575

• DR. POSITANO:
212-606-1858


	Office Locations: Interactive Map Belaire Building, 2nd Floor 525 East 71st Street New York, NY 10021 Tel: 212-606-1888 Fax: 212-628-4473 Hotline: 800-352-2440 Mailing Address Hospital for Special Surgery 535 East 70th Street New York, New York 10021

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Dr. Helfet is the Director of the Orthopaedic Trauma Service at both the Hospital for Special Surgery and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center. He is also a Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical School. He is also consistantly top ranked among as a top orthopaedic surgeon in the reference book America’s Top Doctors published by Castle Connolly and New York Magazine - Best Doctor rankings.

Dr. Helfet specializes in treatment of:
- Minimally invasive fracture surgery
- Fractures and dislocations of both the upper and lower extremities
- Fractures of the pelvis and acetabulum
- Complex fractures with angular deformities and/or bone defects
- Poly-trauma patients with orthopaedic injuries
- Fractures in adolescents, adults and the elderly populations
- Periprosthetic fractures
- Insufficiency fractures
- Complex cases requiring correction of deformity or
limb lengthening
- Corrective osteotomies (long bones and pelvic osteotomies)
- Non-unions
- Malunions
- Hip dysplasia
- Chronic post-partum pelvic pain and/or instability

Dr. Helfet was born in Capetown, South Africa. He completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Cape Town, receiving a BSc in biochemistry with honors, followed by medical school, where he received a M.B.CH.B. degree in 1975. Internship and surgical residency was performed at Edendale Hospital in Pietermaritzburg, S.A. and at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) in Baltimore, MD., followed by orthopaedic residency also at Johns Hopkins University, then a Trauma Fellowship at the University of Bern, Insel Hospital (1981) and a Sports Fellowship at UCLA (1981-82).

Dr. Helfet has also published extensively on these topics including numerous articles and book chapters. He frequently presents at both national and international conferences on treatment of orthopaedic trauma. Please press the “Click to download CV” button for more information

He was Assistant Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (1/82-6/86), Associate Professor and Chief of Orthopaedic Trauma at the University of S. Florida School of Medicine/Tampa General Hospital (7/86-6/91) and at the Cornell University Medical College (7/91-6/98). He is currently Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University and Director of the Combined Orthopaedic Trauma Service at both Hospital for Special Surgery and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

His expertise as an Orthopaedic Traumatologist is well recognized. He is a fellow in good standing of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, is a past president of the Orthopaedic Trauma Association, is a former examiner and question writer for the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery and is a Trustee of the AO North America and the AO/ASIF Foundation. He has trained over 35 Orthopaedic Trauma Fellows and numerous international fellows. He has received such visiting lectureships as the Presidential Guest and Watson-Jones Memorial Lecture of the British Orthopaedic Association, and has been the recipient of many honors and awards including the Philip D. Wilson Jr. Teaching Award.