Richard S. Davidson, MD
Areas of expertise: Arthrogryposis, clubfoot (Ponseti method), skew foot, vertical talus, tarsal coalition, Foot and ankle, Limb deficiencies, Limb deformity, Spina bifida, Limb lengthening, Foot deformities, Slipped capital femoral epiphysis (SCFE), Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease, Proximal femur focal deficiency, Tibia hemimelia, Fibular hemimelia, Fractures of the lower extremity
Locations: Main Building, Buerger Center for Advanced Pediatric Care, Specialty Care, King of Prussia, Middleman Family Pavilion
About Richard S. Davidson, MD
Richard S. Davidson, MD, is a pediatric orthopedic surgeon at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and a professor of Orthopedic Surgery at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Davidson has worked at CHOP since 1982, and also serves as a pediatric orthopedic surgeon at the Shriners Hospitals for Children, Philadelphia.
Dr. Davidson is a member of many national and local societies, including the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society, and is past president of the Limb Lengthening and Reconstruction Society.
Dr. Davidson takes special interest in both research and clinical care in the correction of limb deformities and limb-length inequalities due to femoral, tibial and fibular dysplasias; growth injuries and disturbances; congenital malformations; fracture malunions and nonunions; congenital nonunions; Blounts disease; genu varus and valgus; and rickets, among other illnesses and syndromes.
Dr. Davidson is also intensively involved in the treatment of congenital and acquired deformities of the foot and ankle, including clubfoot (Ponseti and other methods), skew foot, vertical talus, tarsal coalition, Hallux valgus, painful flat foot, spina bifida and other deformities.
A graduate of New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, Dr. Davidson completed an internship and residency in general surgery at Bellevue Hospital, New York, NY, and a residency in orthopedic surgery at the Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, NY. He also completed a pediatric orthopedics fellowship at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada.
Dr. Davidson has published and lectured widely around the world. He has also authored and coauthored numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals and chapters in textbooks.
Titles
Attending Orthopedic Surgeon
Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Certifications
Orthopaedic Surgery – American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery
Awards and Honors
2022, Philadelphia Magazine's Top Doctors in Orthopedic Surgery
Editorial and Academic Positions
- Associate Editor, Foot & Ankle, International (1989-present)
- Reviewer, Advances in Orthopaedic Society (1990-1993)
- Reviewer, Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research (1993-present)
- Guest Editor, Foot and Ankle Clinics: Pediatric Orthopaedic Problems of the Foot and Ankle (1998)
- Editorial Board, Children’s Doctor, a publication of the Doctors of The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (1996-present)
- Consultant Reviewer, Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics (2006)
Research Interests
Double tibial osteotomy with Ilizarov external fixation for treatment of infantile Blount's tibia vara McFarland bypass bone graft in the treatment of anterolateral bowing of the tibia (pre-pseudarthrosis of the tibia), a two- to 10-year follow-up Intertrochanteric osteotomy with mono-lateral external fixation to treat severe deformity of slipped capital femoral epiphysis Retrospective review (60 cases) of gradual correction of adolescent Blount's deformity with hinged external fixators Tarsal tunnel syndrome associated with pes valgus in adolescents Pinning of slipped capital femoral epiphysis Salvage procedures for the management of residual and recurrent deformities in the older child with club foot Avascular necrosis in second-side acute unstable slipped capital femoral epiphysis Treatment of combined tarsal coalition and severe pes valgus
Education & training
Undergraduate Degree
BA — Columbia University, New York, NY
Medical Degree
MD — New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY
Internship
General Surgery — New York University and Bellevue Hospitals, New York, NY
Residency
General Surgery — New York University and Bellevue Hospitals, New York, NY
Orthopedic Surgery — The Hospital for Special Surgery, Cornell University, New York, NY
Fellowship
Pediatric Orthopedics — Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada
Publications
Publications
2023
Automating Angle Measurements on Foot Radiographs in Young Children: Feasibility and Performance of a Convolutional Neural Network Model, Journal of Digital Imaging, D-23- 00018R1: 2023
2022
Malige A, Chang H, Mellor X, et al. (February 07, 2022) Flexible Flat Foot, Short Tendo-Achilles and Altered Gait. Cureus 14(2): e21983. doi:10.7759/cureus.21983
2016
Saba Pasha, Michelle Ho, Victor Ho-Fung, Richard S. Davidson, MD Application of weight bearing biplanar steroradiography in assessment of lower limb Deformity: Journal of Limb Lengthening & Reconstruction Volume 2, Issue 1 Jan-Jun 2016 pages 40-47.
2013
Davidson, RS. MRI Evaluation of the Knee in Patients with Infantile Blount Disease: Tibial and Extra Tibial Findings. Pediatric Radiology, March 2013.
Muhly, W, Gurnancy, H, Hosalkar, H, Kraemer, F, Davidson, RS, Ganesh, A. Continuous perineural infusion after lower extremity osteotomies in children: a feasibility and safety analysis. British Journal of Anaesthesia 2013 110 (5): 851-852.
2011
Davidson, RS. The MAC (Multi-Axial Correcting) Monolateral External Fixation System (Biomet/EBI) Technique: An Easier Way to Correct Deformity; Operative Techniques in Orthopaedics, Volume 21(2), 113-124, June 2011.
Flynn, JM, Garner, MR, Jones, KJ, D’Italia, J, Davidson, RS, Ganley, TJ, Horn, BD, Spiegel, D, Wells, L. The Treatment of Low-Energy Femoral Shaft Fractures: A Prospective Study Comparing The “Walking Spica” with the Traditional Spica Cast. J Bone Joint Surg AM 93A(23): 2196-2202, December 2011.
2010
Horn, BD, Davidson, RS. Current treatment of clubfoot in infancy and childhood. Foot Ankle Clin. 2010 Jun;15(2): 235-43.
Smith JR, Davidson RS: Bowing of the right lower leg in a 6 month old infant. JAAA 23(2): 69-71, February 2010 .
Wells, L; Avery, A; Hosalkar, H; Friedman, J; and Davidson, RS. Cast Wedging: A “Forgotten” Yet Predictable Method for Correcting Fracture Deformity: The University of Pennsylvania Orthopaedic Journal, 20: 113-116, Spring, 2010.
2009
Arkader, A, Davidson, RS. Cross-hip X-ray view for proximal femoral osteotomies. AM J Orthop (Belle Mead NJ) 29(7): 306-307, June 2009.
Clark, SE, McCarthy, JJ, Davidson, RS. Treatment of Blount Disease: A comparison between the multi-axial correction system and other external fixators. J.Pediatr Orthop. 29(2): 103-109, March 2009.
McCarthy, JJ, MacIntyre, NR 3rd, Hooks, B, Davidson, RS. Double osteotomy for the treatment of severe Blount disease. J. Pediatr Orthop 29(2):115-119, March 2009.
McCarthy, JJ, Kozin, SH, Tuohy, C, Cheung, E, Davidson, RS, Noonan, K. External fixation and centralization versus external fixation and ulnar osteotomy; the treatment of radial dysplasia using the resolved total angle of deformity. J. Pediatr Orthop 29(7): 797-803, Oct-Nov, 2009.
Ranade, A, McCarthy, JJ, Davidson, RS. Angular deformity in pediatric trans tibial amputation stumps. J Pediatr Orthop. 2009 Oct-Nov;29(7): 726-9.
Tuohy, C, McCarthy, JJ, Kozin, SH, Cheung, E, Davidson, RS: Comparison of preliminary external fixation versus ulnar osteotomy with external fixation for the treatment of radial dysplasia using the resolved (3-D) total angle of deformity measurement. Temple University of Orthopaedics Journal 7: 797-803, Oct/Nov, 2009.