About Bassem Elhassan, MD

Dr. Elhassan joined Massachusetts General Hospital in October 2020. Before coming here, he was on the faculty at the Mayo Clinic and was a Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine.

Dr. Elhassan received his medical degree at the American University of Beirut. He completed three years of training in general surgery focusing on cardiothoracic surgery and one year in orthopaedic surgery at the American University of Beirut. Dr. Elhassan went on to complete his residency in orthopaedic surgery at the University of Illinois in Chicago. While there, he received the Senior Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society, as well as the Robert Ray Award for Research. Dr. Elhassan completed a fellowship in hand and upper extremity at the Mayo Clinic and an additional fellowship in shoulder and elbow surgery at Mass General.

Dr. Elhassan started working at the Mayo Clinic in 2007. He won the Mayo Clinic Teacher of the Year Award for two consecutive years in 2009 and 2010, and his upper extremity service was voted as one of the best rotations for the Mayo Clinic’s residents and fellows.

Dr. Elhassan has been innovative in the field of upper extremity surgery and he has developed numerous novel procedures (20 new surgical procedures for the shoulder, elbow and wrist) through dedicated anatomic and biomechanical studies. The care and outcome of patients, specifically those with complex shoulder and elbow problems, improved significantly because of these innovations. He is considered the world expert in the evaluation and management of scapulothoracic disorders, and tendon transfers around the shoulder and elbow.

Dr. Elhassan has published over 125 peer-reviewed articles and authored thirty book chapters. He has presented at countless meetings both nationally, as well as internationally, and he has won numerous awards for best abstract, paper, poster, video and podium presentation in national and international hand and shoulder and elbow societies. He is also the recipient of the 2015 ASES Traveling Fellowship Exchange Program.

Clinical Interests:

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Locations

Shoulder Service
55 Fruit St.
Yawkey Center for Outpatient Care
Suite 3G
Boston, MA 02114
Phone: 617-724-7300

Medical Education

  • MD, American University - Beirut, Faculty of Medicine
  • Residency, University of Illinois at Chicago
  • Fellowship, Massachusetts General Hospital
  • Fellowship, Mayo Clinic Foundation

American Board Certifications

  • Hand Surgery, American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery
  • Orthopaedic Surgery, American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery

Accepted Insurance Plans

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Research

Dr. Elhassan's main research is focused on understanding the anatomy and biomechanics of the shoulder. He was able, with the help of his colleagues, to create a state-of-the-art shoulder model to conduct his studies on. This model has helped in the evaluation of the kinematics of the scapula and the scapulothoracic articulation. In addition, it helped determine the effectiveness of different muscle transfers to reconstruct the deficient rotator cuff, in native shoulders as well as in shoulders with reverse shoulder arthroplasty.

Publications

    • Elhassan B, Noureldin M, Kakar S. Proximal Scaphoid Pole Reconstruction Utilizing Ipsilateral Proximal Hamate Autograft. Hand (N Y). 2016 Dec; 11 (4):495-499.
    • Kakar S, Noureldin M, Elhassan B. Ulnar head replacement and sigmoid notch resurfacing arthroplasty with a lateral meniscal allograft: 'calamari procedure'. J Hand Surg Eur Vol. 2017 Jul; 42 (6):567-572.
    • Werthel JD, Bertelli J, Elhassan BT. Shoulder function in patients with deltoid paralysis and intact rotator cuff. Orthop Traumatol Surg Res. 2017 Oct; 103 (6):869-873.
    • Willemot LB, Elhassan BT, Verborgt O. Bony Reconstruction of the Anterior Glenoid Rim. J Am Acad Orthop Surg. 2018 May 15; 26 (10):e207-e218.
    • Burnier M, Elhassan BT, Sanchez-Sotelo J. Surgical Management of Irreparable Rotator Cuff Tears: What Works, What Does Not, and What Is Coming. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2019 Sep 4; 101 (17):1603-1612.
    • Tagliero AJ, Bukowski BR, Rose PS, Morrey ME, Elhassan BT, Barlow JD, Wagner ER, Sanchez-Sotelo J, Houdek MT. High incidence of complications associated with shoulder girdle reconstruction utilizing a Stryker proximal humerus cap endoprosthesis following Tikhoff-Linberg resections. Int Orthop. 2020 May 4.
    • Reif T, Schoch B, Spiguel A, Elhassan B, Wright T, Sanchez-Sotelo J, Wilke BK. A retrospective review of revision proximal humeral allograft-prosthetic composite procedures: an analysis of proximal humeral bone stock restoration. J Shoulder Elbow Surg. 2020 Jul; 29 (7):1353-1358 Epub 2020 Feb 12.
    • Elhassan BT, Wagner ER, Kany J. Latissimus dorsi transfer for irreparable subscapularis tear. J Shoulder Elbow Surg. 2020 Oct; 29 (10):2128-2134 Epub 2020 June 09.
    • Elhassan BT, Sanchez-Sotelo J, Wagner ER. Outcome of arthroscopically assisted lower trapezius transfer to reconstruct massive irreparable posterior-superior rotator cuff tears. J Shoulder Elbow Surg. 2020 Oct; 29 (10):2135-2142.
    • Wagner ER, Elhassan BT. Surgical Management of Massive Irreparable Posterosuperior Rotator Cuff Tears: Arthroscopic-Assisted Lower Trapezius Transfer. Curr Rev Musculoskelet Med. 2020 Oct; 13 (5):592-604.
    • Ghoraishian M, Stone MA, Elhassan B, Abboud J, Namdari S. Techniques for lower trapezius tendon transfer for the management of irreparable posterosuperior rotator cuff tears. J Orthop. 2020 Nov-Dec; 22:331-335.

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