Clinical Interests:
Cervical deformity, rheumatoid arthritis

Research Interests: 
Cervical and lumbar arthroplasty, cervical spine biomechanics, stability and instrumentation, intraoperative spinal image navigation.

Board Certification: 
American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, July 1995
Recertified by the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, March 2002

Education:
MD: Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis , Indiana

Residency: 
University of Texas-Houston , Houston , Texas

Fellowship:
Spine, Northwestern University, Chicago , Illinois
Spine, Baylor University , Houston , Texas
AO Spine, St. Gallen , Switzerland

Publications:
Dr. Sasso is the author of more than 45 peer-reviewed journal articles and numerous book chapters .

Current Academic Appointments:
2005 - Volunteer Associate Professor of Clinical Orthopaedics, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Indiana University School of Medicine , Indianapolis , Indiana

Appointment Scheduling:
317-228-7800 or toll-free 1-866-947-7463

1. Sasso RC, Cotler HB, Reuben JD: Posterior Fixation of Thoracic and Lumbar Spine Fractures using DC Plates and Pedicle Screws. Spine 16:S134-S139, 1991
2. Thalgott JP, Cotler HB, Sasso RC, LaRocca HS, Gardner V: Postoperative Infections in Spinal Implants: Classification and Analysis: A Multi-Center Study. Spine 16:981-984, 1991
3. Sasso RC, Urquhart BA, Cain TE: Closed Femoral Shortening. J Pediatr Orthop 13:51-56, 1993.
4. Sasso RC, Cotler HB: Posterior Instrumentation and Fusion for Unstable Fractures and Fracture-Dislocations of the Thoracic and Lumbar Spine: A Comparative Study of Three Fixation Devices in 70 Patients. Spine 18:450-460, 1993
5. Sasso RC, Doherty BJ, Crawford MJ, Heggeness MH: Biomechanics of Odontoid Fracture Fixation: Comparison of the One- and Two-Screw Technique. Spine 18:1950-1953, 1993
6. Sasso RC, Kozak JA, Dickson JH: The Sickle Ligament Revisited: Release of the Lumbosacral Ligament via an Anterior Approach. Spine 18:2127-2130, 1993
7. Heggeness MH, Watters, WC, Francis WR, Lindsey RW, Sasso RC, Huler RJ: Avulsion of the Anterior Superior Iliac Spine: A Complication of Bone Graft Harvest. Complications in Orthopedics 9:39-43, 1994
8. Sasso RC, Jeanneret B, Fischer AK , Magerl F: Occipitocervical Fusion with Posterior Plate and Screw Instrumentation: A Long-Term Follow-Up Study. Spine 19:2364-2368, 1994
9. Thalgott JS, Sasso RC, Cotler HB, Aebi M, LaRocca SH: Adult Spondylolisthesis Treated with Posterolateral Lumbar Fusion and Pedicular Instrumentation with AO DC Plates. J Spinal Disord 10: 204-208, 1997
10. Sasso RC, Meyer PR, Heinemann AW, Van Aken J, Hastie B: Seatbelt Use and Relation to Neurologic Injury in Motor Vehicle Crashes. J Spinal Disord 10: 325-328, 1997
11. Sasso RC, Williams JI, Dimasi N, Meyer PR: Postoperative Drains at the Donor Site of Iliac Crest Bone Grafts: A Prospective, Randomized Study of Morbidity at the Donor Site in Patients who had a Traumatic Injury of the Spine. J Bone Joint Surg 80-A: 631-635, 1998.
12. Coleman WP, Benzel E, Cahill DW, Ducker T, Geisler F, Green B, Gropper MR, Goffin J, Madsen PW, Maiman DJ, Ondra SL, Rosner M, Sasso RC, Trost GR, Zeidman S: A Critical Appraisal of the Reporting of the National Acute Spinal Cord Injury Studies (II and III) of Methylprednisolone in Acute Spinal Cord Injury. J Spinal Disord 13: 185-199, 2000
13. Sasso RC, Ahmad RI, Butler JE, Reimers DL: Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction: A Long-Term Follow-Up Study. Orthopedics 24: 457-460, 2001
14. Sasso RC, Reilly TM: Odontoid Fractures: Evaluation and Management Options. Seminars in Spine Surgery 13: 106-115, 2001
15. Sasso RC: C2 Dens Fractures: Treatment Options. J Spinal Disord 14: 455-463, 2001
16. Mummaneni PV, Haid RW, Traynelis VC, Sasso RC, Subach BR, Fiore AJ, Rodts GE: Posterior cervical fixation using a new polyaxial screw and rod system: technique and surgical results. Neurosurg Focus 12: Article 8 (1-5), 2002.
17. Mummaneni PV, Haid RW, Sasso RC: Principles of Spinal Deformity. Part I: Evaluation of Thoracolumbar Deformity and Nonoperative Treatment Strategies. Contemporary Neurosurgery 24: (19) 1-7, 2002.
18. Fiore AJ, Mummaneni PV, Haid RW, Rodts GE, Sasso RC: C1 Lateral Mass Screws: Surgical Nuances. Techniques in Orthopaedics 17: 272-277, 2002
19. Reilly TM, Sasso RC: Anterior Odontoid Screw Techniques. Techniques in Orthopaedics 17: 306-315, 2002
20. Mummaneni PV, Mummaneni VP, Haid RW, Rodts GE, Sasso RC: Cervical Osteotomy for the Correction of Chin-On-Chest Deformity in Ankylosing Spondylitis: Technical note. Neurosurg Focus 14: Article 9 (1-6), 2003.
21. Sasso RC, Ruggiero RA, Reilly TM, Hall PV: Early Reconstruction Failures after Multilevel Cervical Corpectomy. Spine 28: 140-142, 2003
22. Sasso RC, Burkus JK, LeHuec JC: Retrograde Ejaculation after Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion: Transperitoneal versus Retroperitoneal Exposure. Spine 28: 1023-1026, 2003
23. Reilly TM, Sasso RC, Hall PV: Atlantoaxial Stabilization: Clinical Comparison of Posterior Cervical Wiring Technique with Transarticular Screw Fixation. J Spinal Disord 16: 248-253, 2003
24. Vaccaro AR, Kim DH, Brodke DS, Harris M, Chapman J, Schildhauer T, Routt MLC, Sasso RC: Diagnosis and management of thoracolumbar spine fractures. J Bone Joint Surg 85-A: 2456-2470, 2003.
25. Vaccaro AR, Kim DH, Brodke DS, Harris M, Chapman J, Schildhauer T, Routt MLC, Sasso RC: Diagnosis and management of sacral spine fractures. J Bone Joint Surg 86-A: 166-175, 2004.
26. Sasso RC, Kitchel SH, Dawson EG: A Prospective, Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial of Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion using a Titanium Cylindrical Threaded Fusion Device. Spine 29: 113-121, 2004
27. Puschak TJ, Sasso RC: Use of artificial disc replacement in degenerative conditions of the cervical spine. Current Opinion in Orthopaedics 15: 175-179, 2004
28. Puschak TJ, Sasso RC: Fixation in the occiput. Contemporary Spine Surgery 5: 35-42, 2004
29. Anderson PA , Sasso RC, Rouleau JP, Carlson CS, Goffin J: The Bryan Cervical Disc: wear properties and early clinical results. The Spine Journal 4: 303S-309S, 2004
30. Sasso RC, Best NM, Reilly TM, McGuire RA: Anterior-Only stabilization of three-column thoracolumbar injuries. J Spinal Disord Tech 18: 7S-14S, 2005.
31. Sasso RC, LeHuec JC, Shaffrey C: Iliac crest bone graft donor site pain after anterior lumbar interbody fusion: A prospective patient satisfaction outcome assessment. J Spinal Disord Tech 18: 77S-81S, 2005.
32. Sasso RC, Best NM, Mummaneni PV, Reilly TM, Hussain SM: Analysis of operative complications in a series of 471 anterior lumbar interbody fusion procedures. Spine 30: 670-674, 2005.
33. Sasso RC, Baker RM, Geraci MC: Invited Review: Lumbar Zygapophysial Joint evaluation and treatment. Spine Line 6(1): 10-17, 2005.
34. Mummaneni PV, Sasso RC: Minimally Invasive, Endoscopic, Internal Thoracoplasty for the Treatment of Scoliotic Rib Hump Deformity: Technical note. Neurosurgery 56: E444, 2005.
35. Sasso RC, Best NM, Potts EA: Percutaneous computer-assisted translaminar facet screw: an initial human cadaveric study. The Spine Journal 5: 515-519, 2005.
36. Sasso RC, Macadaeg K, Nordmann D, Smith M: Selective nerve root injections can predict surgical outcome for lumbar and cervical radiculopathy: Comparison to magnetic resonance imaging. J Spinal Disord Tech 18:471-478, 2005.
37. Vaccaro AR, Yuan PS, Smith HE, Hott J, Sasso RC, Papadopoulos S: An evaluation of image-guided technologies in the placement of anterior thoracic vertebral body screws in spinal trauma: a cadaver study. J Spinal Cord Med 28:308-313, 2005.
38. Smith HE, Yuan PS, Sasso RC, Papadopoulos S, Vaccaro AR : An evaluation of image-guided technologies in the placement of percutaneous iliosacral screws. Spine 31:234-238, 2006.
    
    Book Chapters:

1. Sasso RC, Cotler HB, Thalgott JS: Transpedicular Fixation with AO Dynamic Compression Plates. In: Spinal Instrumentation, pp. 257-280. Edited by HS An and JC Cotler. Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore , MD. 1992.
2. Sasso RC, Reilly TM: Odontoid and Hangman's Fractures. In: Orthopaedic Knowledge Update (OKU), Trauma-2 nd edition, pp. 337-346. Edited by JF Kellam, TJ Fischer, P Tornetta, MJ Bosse, and MB Harris. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Rosemont , IL . 2000.
3. Sasso RC, Reilly TM: Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion: Threaded Bone Dowels versus Titanium Cages. In: Surgical Management of Low Back Pain, pp. 103-115. Edited by DK Resnick and RW Haid. American Association of Neurological Surgeons, Rolling Meadows , IL . 2001.
4. Sasso RC: Occipital Screw Placement. In: Spine Surgery Tricks of the Trade, pp 18-19. Edited by AR Vaccaro and TJ Albert. Thieme , New York , NY. 2002.
5. Sasso RC: Graft Placement across the Posterior Occipitocervical Junction. In: Spine Surgery Tricks of the Trade, pp 22-23. Edited by AR Vaccaro and TJ Albert. Thieme , New York , NY. 2002.
6. Sasso RC: Odontoid Screw Placement. In: Spine Surgery Tricks of the Trade, pp 60-61. Edited by AR Vaccaro and TJ Albert. Thieme , New York , NY. 2002.
7. Sasso RC: Cages, Screws, or Both? In: Lumbar Interbody Fusion Techniques: Cages, Dowels, and Grafts, pp 59-77. Edited by RW Haid, MR McLaughlin, and RG Fessler. Quality Medical Publishing, St. Louis , Missouri 2003.
8. Sasso RC: Anterior Blocks. In: Lumbar Interbody Fusion Techniques: Cages, Dowels, and Grafts, pp 101-121. Edited by RW Haid, MR McLaughlin, and RG Fessler. Quality Medical Publishing, St. Louis , Missouri 2003.
9. Sasso RC: Odontoid Screw Fixation. In: Fractures of the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine, pp 325-333. Edited by AR Vaccaro. Marcel Dekker, New York , NY . 2003.
10. Sasso RC, Mummaneni VP, Mummaneni PV: Cervical Osteotomy. In: Master Techniques in Orthopaedic Surgery: The Spine-2 nd edition, pp 67-77. Edited by DS Bradford and TA Zdeblick. Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia , PA. 2004.
11. Sasso RC: Anterior Odontoid Fixation. In: Master Techniques in Orthopaedic Surgery: The Spine-2 nd edition, pp 79-86. Edited by DS Bradford and TA Zdeblick. Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia , PA. 2004.
12. Vaccaro AR , Kim DH, Brodke DS, Harris M, Chapman J, Schildhauer T, Routt MLC, Sasso RC: Diagnosis and management of Thoracolumbar spine fractures. Chapter 33 In: Instructional Course Lectures Volume 53, 2004, pp 359-373. Edited by DL Helfet and WB Greene. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Rosemont , IL . 2004.
13. Vaccaro AR , Kim DH, Brodke DS, Harris M, Chapman J, Schildhauer T, Routt MLC, Sasso RC: Diagnosis and management of Sacral spine fractures. Chapter 34 In: Instructional Course Lectures Volume 53, 2004, pp 375-385. Edited by DL Helfet and WB Greene. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Rosemont , IL . 2004.
14. Sasso RC: Complications of Posterior Occipitocervical Instrumentation. In: Complications of Pediatric and Adult Spinal Surgery, pp 301-321. Edited by AR Vaccaro, JJ Regan, AH Crawford, EC Benzel, and DG Anderson. Marcel Dekker, New York , NY . 2004.
15. Rodts GE, Sasso RC, Fessler R, Khoo L, Kim AK: Posterior Cervical Fixation. In: Manual of Cervical Spine Internal Fixation, pp 69-99. Edited by SM Papadopoulos. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia , PA. 2004.
16. Sasso RC: Complications related to the management of dens fractures. In: The Cervical Spine-4 th edition, pp 1193-1204. Edited by CR Clark. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia , PA. 2005.
17. Sasso RC: Salvage of long strut graft failure following multilevel cervical corpectomy and arthrodesis. In: The Cervical Spine-4 th edition, pp 1212-1217. Edited by CR Clark. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia , PA. 2005.
18. Puschak TJ, Sasso RC: Spondylolysis-Spondylolisthesis. In: Orthopaedic Knowledge Update (OKU)-8 th edition, pp 553-563. Edited by AR Vaccaro. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Rosemont , IL . 2005.
19. Puschak TJ, Sasso RC: Occipitocervical Vertex Fixation. In: Spinal Instrumentation: Surgical Techniques pp 32-35. Edited by DH Kim , AR Vaccaro, and RG Fessler. Thieme , New York , NY. 2005.
20. Puschak TJ, Sasso RC: Vertex Reconstruction System. In: Spinal Instrumentation: Surgical Techniques pp 321-323. Edited by DH Kim , AR Vaccaro, and RG Fessler. Thieme , New York , NY. 2005.
21. Puschak TJ, Sasso RC: Laminoplasty techniques and fixations. In: Spinal Instrumentation: Surgical Techniques pp 362-366. Edited by DH Kim , AR Vaccaro, and RG Fessler. Thieme , New York , NY. 2005.
22. Dickman CA, Sasso RC, Zdeblick TA: VANTAGE Anterior Fixation System. In: Spinal Instrumentation: Surgical Techniques pp 482-490. Edited by DH Kim , AR Vaccaro, and RG Fessler. Thieme , New York , NY. 2005.
23. Puschak TJ, Sasso RC: Upper Cervical Spine Injury: Occiput to C2. In: Orthopaedic Knowledge Update (OKU), Trauma-3rd edition pp 293-304. Edited by MR Baumgaertner and P Tornetta III. American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Rosemont , IL . 2005.
24. Smucker JD, Sasso RC: The Bryan Artificial Disc. In: Spinal Arthroplasty: The Preservation of Motion pp 137-149. Edited by Alexander R. Vaccaro, Stephen Papadopoulos, Vincent C. Traynelis, Regis W. Haid, and Rick C. Sasso. Saunders Elsevier, Philadelphia , PA. 2007.
25. Puschak TJ, Sasso RC: Metastatic Spinal Tumors. In: Decision Making in Spinal Care pp 325-330. Edited by D. Greg Anderson, and Alexander R. Vaccaro. Thieme , New York , NY. 2007.
26. Puschak TJ, Sasso RC: Nucleus Replacements. In: Decision Making in Spinal Care pp 421-426. Edited by D. Greg Anderson, and Alexander R. Vaccaro. Thieme , New York , NY. 2007.