Michael Vitale MD MPH

06/22/2026

More highlights from last week’s 12th Annual Symposium on the Pediatric Spine!

Thank you to all of our outstanding speakers for sharing your knowledge, experience, and commitment to pediatric spine care. Your contributions encouraged thoughtful discussion, collaboration, and continued learning among our community, helping to further our goal of improving outcomes for patients with scoliosis and spinal conditions.

Benjamin D. Roye, MD, MPH
Mary Miceli, DPT
Eric Parent, PT, PhD
Prachi Bakarania, DPT
Tricia St. Hilaire, MPH
Kelly Grimes, DPT
Kathryn Bacigalupo, PT, DPT
Jeanne Halloran, DPT
Gail Fennell, DPT
Rebekah Wallach, DPT
Amber Sentell Mizerik, PA-C
Abigail Smul, DPT
Andrea Nikolov
John Tunney, BOCPO
M. Timothy Hresko, MD
Andreas Wuersching, CEO
Andrew K. Chan, MD
James H. Wynne, CPO, FAAOP

06/21/2026

Proud to see such a strong Columbia presence at the 12th Annual Pediatric Spine Symposium: Best in Class Non-Operative Care! It was a wonderful opportunity to come together as a team, and represent Columbia’s continued commitment to advancing pediatric spine care.

Thank you to all of our speakers, colleagues, and contributors for sharing their knowledge, research, and dedication to improving pediatric spine care. A special thank you to my co-directors Prachi Bakarania, DPT, Amber Sentell Mizerik, PA, and William Campos for their leadership and commitment to making this initiative a success.

06/20/2026

Michael first came to our clinic at just 8 months of age after being diagnosed with infantile scoliosis. At that time, his major curve measured 29 degrees on a supine X-ray. Just four months later, his scoliosis had progressed rapidly to 40 degrees.

Given his young age and the progressive nature of his curve, Michael began treatment with Mehta-style serial casting. He underwent four scoliosis casts and achieved excellent correction while in the cast. However, each time a cast was removed, his curve gradually bounced back and continued to progress, eventually reaching 55 degrees. Following casting, Michael transitioned to a Boston-style TLSO, which initially provided good correction.

Unfortunately, despite bracing, Michael's scoliosis continued to worsen as he grew. His curve ultimately progressed to 74 degrees, and he began experiencing pulmonary symptoms that we believed were related to the severity of his spinal deformity.

After careful discussion with Michael's family, we elected to proceed with insertion of MAGEC growing rods from T3 to L3. The goal was to control his scoliosis while allowing continued growth of his spine and chest. Since surgery, Michael has undergone routine MAGEC lengthenings and has done remarkably well. His thoracic curve is now just 8 degrees, representing a dramatic improvement from where he started.

Michael's journey highlights both the challenges and possibilities of treating severe infantile scoliosis. Through early intervention, careful monitoring, multiple stages of treatment, and a strong partnership with his family, we have been able to guide his spine through some of its most important years of growth while maintaining excellent control of his deformity.

06/15/2026

As part of Scoliosis Awareness Month, we wanted to share some brace tips and tricks to help improve comfort during summertime wear.

Andrea is one of our bracing pros, and she put together this short video to help other children navigating brace wear this summer. Small adjustments can make a big difference in staying comfortable throughout the warmer months.

Thank you, Andrea, for sharing your helpful advice and supporting other kids in the scoliosis community!

06/05/2026

So proud of Drs. O'Connor, Arvind, and Coury for representing our spine research team and presenting in the Best Paper Finalists session at the Safety in Spine Surgery Summit today.

06/04/2026

AI will make us better, safer spine surgeons.

This is the first of 6 projects we are conducting, showing the power of using AI interpretation of intraoperative neuromonitoring as a decision support tool.

Please take a look at this first paper. And excited to introduce our new AI Spine Program Manager, Michael Bouvette (“borrowed” from Amazon’s AI Division), who will be driving these proof-of-concept results to real-time decision support in our operating rooms.

The future is here.

Full-text access: https://link.springer.com/epdf/10.1007/s43390-026-01461-4?sharing_token=MDXUMaiwPMYvblYMqRcBTPe4RwlQNchNByi7wbcMAY43F49Jh5cYgLLowoyR859eBhhiUZiNn7Dm6I8KykJVHL6AJDlN-Gq8bWo6ZL5RGkngnxtYme2vpXvKR5On685mV3MTqg_E3bHt6n8H9KrKglgsNqRaeGamXKSKG2CVapE%3D

06/04/2026

As part of Scoliosis Awareness Month, we are sharing information to help families recognize the signs of scoliosis and understand the importance of early detection.

Scoliosis is a three-dimensional curvature of the spine that most commonly develops during adolescence. It is often first noticed by a parent, pediatrician, or during a school screening. Common signs include uneven shoulders, shoulder blades, ribs, or hips. Early detection is especially important during periods of rapid growth, when curves are most likely to progress. Awareness leads to earlier diagnosis and better outcomes for children with scoliosis.

05/25/2026

The full recording of our May 2026 Scoliosis Lunch & Learn webinar is now available on YouTube.

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the discussion. For those who were unable to attend live, the webinar recording can now be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODpOvsr-LJs

Registration also remains open for the 12th Annual Best-in-Class Symposium on the Pediatric Spine on June 18, offered both in person and virtually. We hope you will join us for a day of learning and discussion focused on advancing pediatric spine care!
Register here: https://www.columbiaortho.org/education/professional-education/12th-annual-best-class-symposium-pediatric-spine

Streamed live on May 18, 2026, the Columbia University Department o...

05/11/2026

Excited to share the launch of Mastering Pediatric Spinal Deformity, a practical guide for orthopedic surgeons and neurosurgeons focused on pediatric spinal deformity.

Chapters emphasize high-yield clinical takeaways, including real-world clinical decision making, surgical technique, perioperative management, complications, and systems-based care in pediatric spine surgery.

While I’ve written several books on the topic of spinal deformity, I’m particularly proud of this one, written with my partner, Lawrence G. Lenke, MD, and two of our amazing former spine deformity fellows, who are now leaders in their field and champions of education, completing the virtuous cycle of teacher, student, teacher.

https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-032-13489-9

05/05/2026

So happy that my very first meeting at POSNA 2026 in Orlando was with my friend and colleague Ameeka George, who now leads the APP program at Stanford Children’s Health and serves on the board of POPS.

We miss you, Ameeka, but are so proud of all the incredible work you’re doing!