As the newest member of the Limb Lengthening and Complex Reconstruction Service, Dr. Jason Shih Hoellwarth specializes in a wide variety of complex skeletal reconstruction surgery for patients of all ages. This includes pediatric deformities such as congenital skeletal concerns, growth irregularity, hip dysplasia, cerebral palsy, osteogenesis imperfecta, and limb deficiencies such as femoral, tibial, and fibular hemimelia. He also cares for adults with joint degeneration, arthritis, bowlegs, knock knees, nonunion, malunion, and many other problems related to alignment, length, infection, or fracture care. Dr. Hoellwarth is also the most highly published American on the topic of osseointegration for amputees.
A Chicago-native, Dr. Hoellwarth graduated from Case Western Reserve University with a B.S. in biochemistry and psychology. He attended the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, leading the student-run free clinic, two high school mentoring programs, and completed a year of research in pediatric orthopedic surgery at Boston Children’s Hospital. Following orthopedic residency at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, where he was a chief resident and responsible for intern training, he completed four successive fellowships to broaden and deepen his experience.
Dr. Hoellwarth’s first fellowship was with the Osseointegration Group of Australia, led by Munjed Al Muderis, where he learned to perform transcutaneous osseointegration for amputees which provides a permanent skeletal connection between the patient’s bone and prosthetic limb. He then completed his pediatric orthopedic fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine, learning at Houston’s Shriners Hospital and Texas Children’s Hospital with Dr. Scott Rosenfeld focusing on traumatic injuries and hip disorders. The following fellowship of pediatric deformity reconstruction at the Paley Institute taught Dr. Hoellwarth how to manage stature and limb deficiency including achondroplasia (dwarfism), hypochondroplasia, and hemimelia or deficiency of the femur, fibula, and tibia.
Dr. Hoellwarth completed his fourth fellowship with his current Limb Lengthening and Complex Reconstruction partners at the Hospital for Special Surgery, where he solidified his skills with external fixation and hexapod techniques, minimally invasive osteotomies, osseointegration, joint replacement, and managing complex deformity problems such as soft tissue and bone infection, nonunion, malunion, osteochondromas, nerve compression, and chronic pain related to bone and joint disorders.
Beyond medicine, Dr. Hoellwarth tries to advocate for the environment and is a volunteer instructor for cultural Chinese lion dance. These hobbies remind him that physical mobility and social equity are essential to health. His hope is to help develop affordable and available care to populations living in limited resource environments.