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Biography

Fred H. Geisler, M.D., Ph.D., is a recognized international expert in spinal care and developing new innovative procedures. These include internal stabilization, minimally invasive surgery, and motion preserving artificial discs. He was an early developer of spinal techniques at the Shock Trauma Center in Maryland and was a founding member of the CINN Institute for Spine Care and an assistant professor of neurosurgery at Rush Medical College, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois. He has recently relocated to the Rush-Copley Medical Center and founded the Illinois Neuro-Spine Center.

Dr. Geisler is a board-certified neurosurgeon with over 20 years of experience caring for patients with back and neck problems. He is one of the nation's leading authorities on spinal cord injuries and degenerative diseases of the spine. He is particularly well known for the development and use of implants, fusion techniques, instrumentation, motion preserving artificial discs, and other innovative techniques to treat complex spine disorders. He has also studied non-operative treatment of spinal disorders; the majority of new patients are treated without surgery.

Dr. Geisler obtained his doctorate in physics in 1972 at Washington University at St. Louis, Missouri. He spent the following two years conducting biophysics research as a fellow at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York. In 1974, Dr. Geisler began his medical education at the State University of New York at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. He remained in Buffalo for the next nine years, pursuing both his general surgery internship and neurosurgical residency at Buffalo General Hospital. After completing his residency in 1983, Dr. Geisler held a yearlong fellowship in neurotrauma at the University of Maryland, Shock-Trauma Center of the Maryland Institute of Emergency Medical Services Systems (MIEMSS) in Baltimore.

In 1984, Dr. Geisler joined the faculty of the University of Maryland School of Medicine as an assistant professor of neurosurgery and was appointed medical director of the Neurotrauma Unit of the MIEMSS Shock-Trauma Center. In 1990, Dr. Geisler joined the staff of The Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he remained until accepting his appointment at CINN in 1992.

Dr. Geisler is an active researcher, lecturer, and author. He recently led a large national study evaluating the effectiveness of Sygen, a drug used to treat patients with spinal cord injuries. The focus of his current research is the development and analysis of new methods to stabilize and preserve motion in spinal structures. He is the principal investigator for several multi-center clinical trials. Recent trials include the study of the safety and effectiveness of the PLIF Allograft Spacer (an interbody device), Hylagel (an anti-scar compound), Autologous Growth Factor (a bone graft enhancer), Grafton DBM Gel and Putty (a bone graft extender), and the SB Charite III Intervertebral Disc Spacer (artificial lumbar disc). Dr. Geisler has published numerous articles on the management of spinal cord injuries and various fusion, implant, and interbody stabilization techniques.

Dr. Geisler is a member of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, Congress of Neurological Surgeons, National Spinal Cord Injury Association, Neurotrauma Society, American Back Society, and North American Spine Society.