Here are four updates from the North American Spine Society in 2025:
1. William Mitchell, MD, was named as the new president of the North American Spine Society.
2. The North American Spine Society has announced the winners for its five Recognition Awards.
Here are the five award winners:
- Henry Farfan Award: Virginie Lafage, PhD, who has extensive clinical training in spine surgery with focuses on sagittal spinopelvic alignment, adult spinal deformity, cervical deformity and soft tissue analysis. The award recognizes outstanding contributions in spine related basic science research.
- Leon Wiltse Award: Michael Steinmetz, MD, who is an academic spine surgeon and chair of the department of neurosurgery at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine. The award recognizes excellence in leadership and/or clinical research in spine care.
- David Selby Award: David O’Brien, MD, who is physiatrist at the Wake Forest School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C. The award recognizes outstanding contributions in spine related basic science research.
- Spine Advocacy Award: Donna Lahey, RNFA, who is registered nurse first assist with more than three decades of experience specializing in spinal research and education. She is also CEO of the Spine Institute of Arizona. The award recognizes NASS members who have made exceptional contributions to the federal advocacy efforts on behalf of patients and members of the society.
- International Award: Hani Mhaidli, MD, PhD, who is an orthopedic surgeon and has served on multiple NASS committees. The award recognizes international members of the NASS who have made outstanding contributions in basic science research, clinical research, or service to the organization.
3. The North American Spine Society has launched a new streaming platform for spine education, replacing its previous pay-per-meeting model. The platform, called NASS Anytime, offers a subscription-based service with access to more than 100 hours of spine education, including surgical videos, recorded webinars, interactive courses and conference highlights. Content is searchable, supports CME tracking and will be updated year-round.
4. NASS announced its “20 Under 40” list for its publication, SpineLine.
