About Ali A. Baaj, MD

Dr. Baaj is Chief of Spine Surgery and Associate Professor of Neurological & Orthopedic Surgery at the University of Arizona and Banner - University Medical Center in Phoenix, AZ. He specializes in spinal surgery and has advanced training and expertise in pediatric and adult spinal oncology and complex reconstructive surgery for spinal deformity.

Dr. Baaj received his medical degree from Boston University College of Medicine. He completed a general surgical internship at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore followed by a neurosurgical residency at the University of South Florida in Tampa. Dr. Baaj advanced his training as a Research Fellow at the Spinal Biomechanics Laboratory at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix and as a Complex Spine Fellow at Johns Hopkins, with an emphasis on advanced techniques in spinal tumor resection and spinal reconstruction. Furthermore, Dr. Baaj completed a two-month traveling fellowship in Paris studying advanced techniques for pediatric deformity and scoliosis, with an emphasis on neuromuscular and idiopathic scoliosis.

Dr. Baaj is a prolific author of more than 100 abstracts and manuscripts. He is the author of many book chapters with emphasis on spinal anatomy, minimally invasive spine surgery, and advanced surgical techniques. He serves on the editorial boards of Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery and the Journal of Spinal Disorders and Techniques. He is a peer reviewer for these journals as well as for the European Spine Journal and the International Journal of Spine Surgery. Dr. Baaj is also the lead editor of the Handbook of Spine Surgery, now in its 2nd edition.