Robert Harper, MD

Dr. Robert Harper is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon with extensive fellowship training in spine surgery. Dr. Harper is highly skilled in treating a broad range of conditions in the back, neck, and spine using the latest surgical methods available. He specializes in anterior cervical discectomy and fusion, lumbar and cervical disc replacement, cervical foraminotomy, posterior cervical and thoracic decompression and fusion, lateral and anterior lumbar interbody fusion, lumbar fusion, lumbar decompression/laminectomy, lumbar microdiscectomy, revision spine surgery, and adult deformity reconstruction. This expertise includes the latest techniques in minimally invasive spine surgery, such as image-guided and robotic spine surgery.

Dr. Harper earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Missouri in Columbia. He then attended Washington University in St. Louis, where he received his post-baccalaureate pre-medical certificate and a Master of Arts degree in biological sciences. He returned to the University of Missouri and graduated summa cum laude with his medical degree at its School of Medicine. He was also elected into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. Dr. Harper completed his orthopedic surgery residency at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, California, and continued his training with a spine surgery fellowship at Stanford University in California.

Embracing the challenges and intricacies of spine surgery, his motivation stems from witnessing patients’ significant improvement, freeing them from severe pain and disability. He uses the latest technology and methods, offering a variety of surgical techniques to meet the needs of his patients. Driven by a philosophy of treating each patient as a member of his own family, he provides the compassionate, experienced care each patient deserves and needs to get back to a life in motion.

Specialty

• Minimally invasive spine surgery
• Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion
• Lumbar and cervical disc replacement 
• Cervical foraminotomy
• Posterior cervical and thoracic decompression and fusion
• Lateral and anterior lumbar interbody fusion
• Lumbar fusion
• Lumbar decompression/laminectomy
• Lumbar microdiscectomy
• Revision spine surgery
• Adult deformity reconstruction
• Image-guided and robotic spine surgery

Education 

• Bachelor of Arts in Literature: University of Missouri, Columbia, MO
• Post-Baccalaureate Pre-Medical Certificate: Washington University in St. Louis, MO
• Master of Arts in Biological Sciences: Washington University in St. Louis, MO
• Doctor of Medicine: University of Missouri School of Medicine, Columbia, MO 
• Orthopedic Surgery Residency: UC Davis Medical Center, Sacramento, CA
• Spine Surgery Fellowship: Stanford University, Stanford, CA