Paul D. Sponseller, M.D. Professorship in Pediatric Orthopaedics

In 1980, PAUL D. SPONSELLER, MD, BUS 1999 (MS), 2001 (MBA), the Paul D. Sponseller, M.D. Professor of Pediatric Orthopaedics, graduated from the University of Michigan medical school. Following graduation, Dr. Sponseller completed his residency in orthopaedic surgery at the University of Wisconsin, followed by a pediatric spine and orthopaedics fellowship at Harvard Medical School’s Children’s Hospital. More recently, he earned a Master of Business Administration degree at The Johns Hopkins University.

Dr. Sponseller has been part of The Johns Hopkins Hospital staff since 1986 and currently holds the position of division head of pediatric orthopaedics and vice chairman of orthopaedic surgery. Additionally, he acts as a staff physician at both the Kennedy Krieger Institute and the Greater Baltimore Medical Center and as a consulting physician at Mount Washington Pediatric Hospital. Dr. Sponseller’s excellence as a physician has earned national and international recognition, and he performs more than 500 surgical procedures per year.

Honored on several occasions for his excellence in teaching and research, Dr. Sponseller received the Arthur H. Heune Award for career research by the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America, The Hibbs Award from the Scoliosis Research Society, and the Yamaguchi Award for Best Paper in Pediatrics by the American Urological Association. He received the Antoine Marfan Award from the National Marfan Foundation. He was twice awarded Teacher of the Year in Orthopaedic Surgery by The Johns Hopkins Hospital and was also named Outstanding Teacher by the Union Memorial Orthopaedic Program. Dr. Sponseller has traveled to Guyana, South America, on three separate occasions to volunteer as a pediatric orthopaedic surgeon for Project Dawn while simultaneously teaching medical students, fellows, and residents.

Dr. Sponseller’s research interests include scoliosis etiology and treatment, pediatric skeletal trauma, genetic diseases, and bladder exstrophy. He has published more than 140 scientific papers and has written and/or contributed to numerous books, book chapters, and articles.

Presently, Dr. Sponseller is a member of several medical boards and associations, including the board of directors and research committee chair for the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America and past member of the board of directors of the Scoliosis Research Society. He is a member of the Harms Study Group and on the executive committee for the Growing Spine Study Group. He is on the professional advisory board of the National Marfan Foundation and a medical board member for the International Rett Syndrome Association. He is also a reviewer for several journals, including the Journal of the American Medical Association, Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, and Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics.