Dr. Robert Keller reviews medical content for Healthwise, a nonprofit organization with a mission to help people make better health decisions. Dr. Keller is an orthopedic surgeon and former Executive Director of the Maine Medical Assessment Foundation, a health services research organization that was located in Augusta, Maine. The Foundation conducted research and clinical projects dealing with depression, diabetes, cesarean section, heart disease, pediatric medical conditions, and low back pain, among others.

Dr. Keller is Clinical Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine. He served as principal investigator for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality study on low back problems and is a coauthor of the Clinical Practice Guideline, Acute Low Back Problems in Adults, published in 1994. He is also principal investigator or co-investigator on other federally funded research projects in lumbar spine conditions and carpal tunnel syndrome.

Board Certifications

American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery

Healthwise Knowledgebase Topics Reviewed

Low Back Pain

Herniated Disc

Neck Pain

Education

M.D.: Cornell University Medical School, 1961

Residency: Mary Hitchcock Hospital, 1961–1963

Combined Orthopaedic Residency: Harvard Medical School, 1965–1969

Academic Appointments

Instructor, Orthopaedic Surgery, Harvard Medical School, 1969–1973

Assistant Professor, Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 1972–1975

Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 1975–1998

Adjunct Professor of Family and Community Medicine and Surgery, Dartmouth Medical School, 1991-2001

Professional Affiliations

American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons

American Medical Association, Performance Measurement Advisory Committee

Eastern Orthopaedic Association

Medical Mutual Insurance Company of Maine

New England Orthopaedic Association

Scoliosis Research Society

Selected Publications

1. Keller RB, Atlas SJ, Singer DE, et al. (1996). The Maine Lumbar Spine Study, Part I. Background and concepts. Spine, 21(15): 1769–1776.
2. Keller RB, Rudicel SA, Liang MH (1994). Outcomes research in orthopaedics.Instructional Course Lectures, 43: 599–611.
3. Atlas SJ, Keller RB, Yen YA, Deyo RA, Singer DE (2005). Long-Term outcomes of surgical and nonsurgical management of lumbar spinal stenosis: 8 to 10 year results from the Maine lumbar spine study. Spine, 30(8): 936–943.
4. Chang Y, Singer DE, Wu YA, Keller, RB, Atlas, SJ (2005). The effect of surgical and nonsurgical treatment on longitudinal outcomes of lumbar spinal stenosis over 10 years. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society; 53(5): 785–792.
5. Keller RB, Atlas SJ, Soule DN, Singer DE, Deyo RA (1999). Relationship between rates and outcomes of operative treatment for lumbar disc herniation and spinal stenosis. Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, 81(6): 752–762.
6. Bigos SJ, Bowyer OR, Braen GR, et al. (1994). Acute Low Back Problems in Adults. Clinical Practice Guideline No. 14 (AHCPR Publication No. 95-0642). Rockville, MD: American Health Care Policy and Research.

Financial Disclosure

This reviewer reported no financial conflicts.