Dr. Jian Shen, MD, PhD

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Get to know Spine Surgeon Dr. Jian Shen, who serves patients in the States of New York and New Jersey

A fellowship-trained, board-certified spine surgeon, Dr. Shen is a world-renowned leader in endoscopic spine surgery and disc regeneration. He is the Founder of Shen-Spine in New York, performing a broad range of endoscopic spine surgeries with specialization in disc herniations, spinal stenosis, and myelopathy. 

With extensive experience in treating a full spectrum of spine conditions, he has performed over 5,000 minimally invasive spine surgeries, including more to 4,000 endoscopic surgeries of the lumbar, cervical, and thoracic spine. In fact, he has performed more endoscopic spine surgeries than any other neurosurgeon in the Western Hemisphere. 

Regardless of the spine disorder, Dr. Shen approaches each patient on an individual basis, with his or her own set of circumstances. He understands pain and will use his knowledge and expertise in least  invasive endoscopic spine surgery to get them back to living their life.

At the forefront of implementing new technologies to drive more positive patient outcomes, helping patients recover better and faster, Dr. Shen has created a protocol for endoscopic spine surgeries called enVision Spine Surgery. Using advanced endoscopic science, he performs spine surgery through a tiny incision that doesn’t disrupt muscles or ligaments and can be covered with a small bandage. In many cases, enVision Spine Surgery can be performed on an outpatient basis, and it is one of the biggest technological advancements to spine surgery in the past 15 years.

Professionally, Dr. Shen is the founder of Shen-Spine, LLC, with offices in New York City, Latham, Goshen, NY, and in Paramus, NJ.

Very active in teaching endoscopic surgery and clinical research, Dr. Shen serves as a Clinical Associate Professor at SUNY Upstate Medical University. Previously, he was a visiting professor at Medical University of South Carolina and Weill Medical College of Cornell University. 

With a broad educational background, Dr. Shen graduated with his Bachelor of Arts degree from  Tsinghua University in Beijing, China in 1992. Upon relocating to the United States, he earned his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Pharmacology from the Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences in 1998, and his medical degree from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York in 2002.

Furthering his training, he completed his internship in general surgery at Mayo Medical Center in 2003, his physician/scientist research fellowship within the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in 2005, his residency in orthopedic surgery at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in 2010, and his fellowship in neurological and orthopedic spine surgery at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center in 2011. 

Among his professional affiliations, he is a founding member of the International Society of Endoscopic Spine Surgery, a member of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, the North American Spine Society, AO Spine, the Society for Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery, the Minimally Invasive Neurosurgical Society, and the International Society for Advancement of Spine Surgery.

Very active in clinical research, Dr. Shen has presented papers at multiple international meetings including the World Congress of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery and Techniques, the Society for Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery Annual Meeting in 2012 through 2020, the Minimally Invasive Neurosurgical Society Annual Meeting in 2013 through 2019, as well as the  International Society for the Advancement of the Spine Annual Meeting in 2015 through 2018. He has also published extensively on endoscopic spine surgery, including clinical research papers in prestigious journals, and a book chapter in a top spine surgery textbook: Benzel’s Spine Surgery 5th edition. 

As recognition of his skill, Dr. Shen has received a number of awards and honors throughout his extensive career, including: America’s Most Honored Doctors Award (2020), Parviz Kambin Award for outstanding scientific and educational dedication to endoscopic spinal surgery (2019), New York Top Doctor Award (2020, 2019), New York/New Jersey Top Spine Surgeon Award (2021, 2020, 2019), New York Patients’ Choice Award (2016-2020),  Joimax Hand-Shake Award (2016),  Academic Achievement Award in Orthopedic Surgery from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center (2009 – 2010), OITE Award (93rd percentile) in Orthopedic Surgery from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center (2008 – 2009), Frank E. Pollock Academic Excellence Award (2007 – 2008), OITE Award (97th percentile) in Orthopedic Surgery from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center (2007 – 2008), OITE Award (95th percentile) in Orthopedic Surgery from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center (2006 – 2007), Vernon Nickel Award (2006), OITE Award (99th percentile) in Orthopedic Surgery from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center (2005 – 2006), Katherine Wolcott Walker Resident Research Award Orthopedic Research and Education Foundation (2005), Finalist, 20th Smith & Nephew Resident Research Competition – Memphis, Tennessee (2005), The Basil M. Boyd, MD Memorial Resident Award (2004), Gold Medal, Residents’ and Fellows’ Research Day (2004), and Graduate Student Teaching Award from Cornell University Medical Center (1998). 

In addition, Dr. Shen has earned more than 70 five-star patient reviews on Healthgrades.com, the leading online resource for comprehensive information about physicians and hospitals.

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