Nicholas Ahn, MD, is joining the University of Louisville School of Medicine from Case Western University and University Hospitals – Cleveland, effective June 1, 2023. 

Dr. Ahn served as the Director of the Spine Fellowship Program (2010-2022) and the Director of the Spinal Cord Injury Unit at the Louis Stokes VA Medical Center (2005-2018). He received a B.S. degree in molecular biophysics and biochemistry from Yale University, and his medical degree from Harvard Medical School. He completed his orthopedic residency at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.  After his residency, he completed a fellowship in Spine Surgery at Rush University in Chicago.

Dr. Ahn specializes in spine surgery with a focus on reconstruction for complex spinal conditions and minimally invasive procedures for degenerative disease.  He has published over 200 articles, abstracts, and book chapters with his medical students and residents, and his research has been nominated for awards from the Cervical Spine Research Society, the North American Spine Society, and the Ohio Orthopedic Society. 

A prolific teacher, he organized and ran the musculoskeletal anatomy course at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine as part of the preclinical curriculum.  He was elected into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honors Society for Excellence in Teaching by the medical school class of 2012, and was given the Kaiser Permanente Teaching Award by the medical school class of 2015.  He is a two-time recipient of the Teaching Award for the orthopedic residency at University Hospitals/ Case Western Reserve University and led the Spine Fellowship Program since 2010.

Dr. Ahn has served on the Field Test Task Force, the Question Writing Committee, and as a Part II Examiner for the American Board of Orthopedic Surgeons and as an advisory editor for multiple orthopedic journals. He has served on the Health Care Quality Assurance Advisory Committee and the Medical Initiatives and Research Committee for the Ohio Bureau of Worker’s Compensation where he helped shape policy for lumbar surgery.  He has been named a “Top Doctor” by Cleveland Magazine and the American Registry, a “Best Doctor” by America’s Best Physicians, and was nominated for the “Patient’s Choice Award” and the “Compassionate Doctor Award” by Vitals. 

"We are delighted to have Dr. Ahn join our leadership team,” said dean Toni Ganzel. “We're confident his talents and skills will bring great value to the department of Orthopedic Surgery and the institution."