About Dr. Wolfe
Dr. Scott Wolfe is an experienced, innovative and authoritative expert in upper extremity problems that incapacitate fingers, hands, wrists, elbows and nerves. Dr. Wolfe frequently operates on complex conditions and specializes in the wrist, specifically, scaphoid surgery, distal radius fractures, wrist fractures, nonunions, Dupuytren’s disease, nerve repair and nerve reconstruction.
Along with an active practice, Dr. Wolfe teaches students daily as a Cornell Medical School Professor of Orthopedic Surgery. He gives educational lectures to medical specialists globally and has advanced the knowledge and technique of hand surgery worldwide. As lead author, he has published over 200 major papers throughout his 30-year career in the most respected, peer-reviewed, American medical journals. His goal is to help achieve consistently superior patient results in hand and nerve surgery.
World class musicians and professional athletes have had their mobility restored through the care of Dr. Wolfe, who has consistently been rated as one of America's and New York’s Top Doctors for over 20 years.
For more information, visit www.scottwolfemd.com
Profile Video
Departments
Specialized Centers
Children and Adolescent Hand and Arm (CHArm) Center
Osseointegration Limb Replacement Center
Special Expertise
Wrist
Wrist Fractures: Distal Radius and Scaphoid Fractures and Non-Unions
Wrist Replacement
Wrist Instability
Osteoarthritis
SLAC / SNAC Wrist
TFCC Injuries / Tears
Ligament Injuries
Basal Joint / Thumb Arthritis
Kienbock’s Disease
Sports Injuries
Wrist Deformities
Inventor: Innovative New Artificial Wrist
Hand
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Cubital Tunnel Syndrome
Guyon's Canal
Peroneal Nerve Disorders
Radial Nerve Disorders
Median Nerve Disorders
Axillary Nerve Repair
Suprascapular Nerve Repair
Musculocutaneous Nerve Repair
Brachial Plexus
Nerve Transfer
Elbow
Biceps Tendon Ruptures
Ulnar Nerve Compression
Elbow Fractures
Patient Stories
Videos
Insurance
If your insurance is not listed, please call our office if you have questions regarding your insurance coverage. If you have out-of-network benefits, then your insurance may reimburse you for a portion of your office visit. We will work with you and your insurance to minimize your out-of-pocket costs. Financial assistance may be available for patients in need.
Credentials
Appointments
Attending Orthopedic Surgeon, Hospital for Special Surgery
Professor of Orthopedic Surgery, Hand Surgery and Nerve Repair, Weill Cornell Medical College
Attending Orthopedic Surgeon, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital
Faculty Director of Orthopedic Surgery, Hospital for Special Surgery
Member, Executive Council, Hospital for Special Surgery
Senior Scientist, Research Division, Hospital for Special Surgery
President, New York Society for Surgery of the Hand
Affiliations
President, New York Society for Surgery of the Hand, 2014
Omicron Delta Kappa, Johns Hopkins University, 1997
Phi Beta Kappa, Johns Hopkins University, 1980
Certification
The American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery
Certificate of Added Qualifications, Surgery of the Hand
Microsurgery, Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center
Awards
Castle Connolly Top Doctor - 20 Years
Castle Connolly America's Top Doctors, 2002-2020
Castle Connolly Top Doctors in New York Metro Area, 2003-2022
New York Magazine Top Doctors, 2002-2022
American Society for Surgery of the Hand Linscheid-Dobyns Excellence in Wrist Research Award, 2018
Kappa Delta Elizabeth Winston Lanier Award, AAOS, 2017
Fellowship Grant, Orthopedic Research and Education Foundation, 2010-2011
Patients' Choice Award, New York Physicians, Vitals, 2008-2010
"Most Compassionate Physician's List", 2009
Best Papers, American Society for Surgery of the Hand, 2009
2nd Prize, New York Society for Surgery of the Hand, Residents and Fellows Night, 2009
Emanuel Kaplan Award, New York Society for Surgery of the Hand, 2009
Philip D. Wilson Award, Hospital for Special Surgery, 2008
1st Prize, New York Society for Surgery of the Hand, Residents and Fellows Night, 2008
OREF Residents Award, 2nd Prize, Andrew Swanson, 2008
First Place Award, 3rd Annual Bioengineering Expo, Institute for Biological Engineering, 2005
Best Scientific Exhibit, American Society for Surgery of the Hand, 2001
Sterling Bunnell Traveling Fellowship, American Society for Surgery of the Hand, 1997-98
The Wayne O. Southwick Teaching Award, Yale Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, 1996
The Wayne O. Southwick Teaching Award, Yale Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, 1992
The T. Campbell Thompson Award for Orthopaedic Excellence, Hospital for Special Surgery and Weill Cornell Medical College 1984
Dean's Research Prize for Orthopaedic Research, Weill Cornell Medical College, 1984
Education
Medical: Cornell University Medical College, 1984
Residency: Roosevelt Hospital General Surgery, US, 1984-85
Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, US, 1986-89
Fellowship: New York Orthopaedic Hospital, The Annie C. Kane Hand and Microsurgical Fellow, US
Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center, US
State Licensure
Languages
English
For My Patients
Surgical Locations
Dr. Wolfe performs surgery at the following locations:
Publications by Dr. Wolfe
Patient Education
- Common Conditions of the Wrist: A Powerful but Vulnerable Joint
- Distal Radius Fracture: Diagnosis, Treatment and Recovery
- Minimally Invasive Hand and Wrist Surgery
Professional Education
- Triple Nerve Transfer and Long Nerve Grafts Restore Function in a Devastating Brachial Plexus Injury
- Microneurolysis to Treat Anterior Interosseous Nerve Syndrome Resulting from Parsonage–Turner Syndrome
- Neurolysis and Nerve Transfer for Iatrogenic Axillary Nerve Injury After Humeral Avulsion of the Glenohumeral Ligament Repair
- Neurotization for Adult Brachial Plexus Injury
Editorial Appointments
Editor, Green's Operative Hand Surgery
Selected Journal Articles
For all publications, please see the PubMed listing.
Selected Books/Chapters
Research
The Development and Implementation of a Non-invasive Markerless Registration System to Study in Vivo Carpal Kinematics
The eight small bones of the carpus exhibit complex but coordinated motions during wrist flexion-extension and radioulnar deviation. Small perturbations in these coordinated motions, such as might be caused by fracture or ligament injury, can result in changes in joint loading and progressive carpal collapse and degenerative arthritis. Previous techniques to study carpal motion have been limited by the need to place invasive markers. We developed a technique using high resolution computed tomography to accurately identify and reconstruct surface contours and analyze rotation and translation of each bone throughout all planes of wrist motion. We have identified a plane of motion that requires almost no contribution from the proximal carpal row, and propose that this so-called "dart-throwers" plane may represent the functional plane of wrist motion and may have evolutionary significance.
Clinical Trials / Research Studies
- A Study of Hyaluronan (Synvisc) for the Treatment of Osteoarthritis in the Thumb: Randomized Control Trial
- Development and Testing of the Hand Surgery Expectations Survey
- Open Label Trial for Treating Carpometacarpal Osteoarthritis: PILOT STUDY - Sub-study on Normal Controls
- Removal of Volar Plates after Distal Radius Fracture
Patient Registries
- Dr. Wolfe is a principal investigator for these patient registries.
Industry Relationships
Industry Relationships
HSS has a long history of supporting appropriate relationships with industry because they advance HSS's mission to provide the highest quality patient care, improve patient mobility, and enhance the quality of life for all, and to advance the science of orthopedic surgery, rheumatology, and their related disciplines through research and education.
Below are the healthcare industry relationships reported by Dr. Wolfe as of March 28, 2023.
- Elsevier, Inc. - Editor; Royalties
- Extremity Medical, LLC - Consultant; Royalties
- HSS ASC of Manhattan, LLC - Ownership Interest
- TriMed, Inc. - Consultant; Royalties; Speakers' Bureau
HSS and its physicians make this information available to patients and the public, thus creating a transparent environment for those who are interested in this information. Further, the HSS Conflicts of Interest and Commitment Policy prohibits physicians from collecting royalties on products they develop that are used on patients at HSS.
Patients should feel free to ask their HSS physicians questions about these relationships.