David Huie, MD, MS, has joined the Duke Spine Division as an assistant professor of neurosurgery and orthopaedic surgery.
Dr. Huie completed his neurosurgical training at Duke, where he developed a clinical interest in managing spine disorders. He is particularly interested in endoscopic spine surgery, one of the newest techniques in spine surgery. This technique allows surgeons to minimize damage to surrounding tissues, reducing post-operative pain and shortening recovery time.
His research interests center on patient outcomes after general spine and endoscopic surgery.
Before moving to North Carolina for his neurosurgical training at Duke, Dr. Huie completed a bachelor's in molecular biology at Princeton University and an MD/MS degree at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, where he received the Theodore Castle Medical Scholarship. While at Case, he was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha medical honor society and was awarded the William J. von Liebig Summer Research Fellowship.
Welcome, Dr. Huie!
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Q&A with Dr. Huie
Q: What brings you joy?
A: I love spending time with my family. My wife is also a physician at Duke, and we have a 2-year-old daughter and a dog. When we can carve out some time, we enjoy cooking, trying new restaurants, hiking, and working through the backlog of TV shows and movies we've meant to watch. I also enjoy playing and watching tennis. I played competitively in the juniors and then took a break during college before picking it up again during medical school. I certainly don't have as much time for it as I used to, but I try to get out when possible.
Professionally, it's been an exciting road. I had no intention of going into the spine when I started residency, and I didn't love it until my chief years. I'd say things drew me to the spine. The first is the decision-making that goes into managing the specific spine problem in the patient in front of you. There are always multiple ways to approach a given issue, and picking the best one for the situation is very interesting to me and something that we, as a field, constantly strive to improve. The second is the difference you can make in your patient's problems–it can be debilitating–however, having patients tell you that the surgery you did has changed their lives and allowed them to do the things they weren't before is tremendously gratifying.
Plus, spine surgery is a lot of fun.
Q: What excites you about this role at Duke?
A: So many things! Having done residency here, I've had the opportunity to train with the faculty within the Spine Division, and I couldn't wait to call them now colleagues. We have incredibly talented representation in all aspects of spine surgery, and I'm thrilled to be a part of that while also having the chance to help build our endoscopic spine program. There's an opportunity here to do a lot of good and help many people. I'm also looking forward to working with the residents and fellows whose position I was in briefly ago. The Duke residents I met as a medical student were the main reason I ranked Duke as my first choice for training, and the opportunity to continue working with them in my new role is very exciting.
Q: Your hometown – where are you from?
A: I grew up in Livingston, NJ, a suburb of Newark, about 40 minutes from NYC. I stayed in NJ through college, then spent some time in Chicago, Cleveland, and Boston before coming to Durham for residency.
Q: Where do you see your area of orthopaedics going within the next five to ten years?
A: I am particularly interested in endoscopic spine surgery, a relatively new area within spine surgery that leverages the minimally invasive nature of the endoscope to perform surgeries through smaller incisions and with less disruption of surrounding tissues. We are still exploring the best ways to use this technology to treat spine disease, and the indications are continually expanding. Over the next 5-10 years, we'll use tools to treat an expanding scope and complexity of spinal disorders.