Dr. L. Erik Westerlund, M.D., FACS is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and is fellowship trained in advanced reconstructive spinal surgery. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, an active member of the North American Spine Society and other similar organizations. He is also an appointed faculty member in Spine Surgery with the highly regarded AO North America organization.
Dr. Westerlund received his medical training at the prestigious Georgetown University of Medicine and took his formal training in orthopedic surgery at the University of Virginia Health Science Center where he also completed a Research Fellowship in Biomechanics, with a focus on orthopedic implant bioengineering.
Upon completion of his orthopedic training he pursued advanced training in reconstructive spine surgery at the internationally-regarded Rothman institute at Thomas Jefferson University.
Simultaneous with his extensive medical training, he pursued his lifelong interest in surgery recovery, joint pain, and health supplement solutions for the needs of athletes to both enhance athletic performance and speed recovery from injuries as well as recovery from surgery. During his medical training he was concurrently training for and participating in triathlons, marathons and ultra marathons so had the opportunity to apply his ever growing medical and nutritional support knowledge to his personal athletic endeavors and gain years of important feedback and insights from his experiences.
Dr. Westerlund has been in active clinical practice since 2002, first in San Diego, California and more recently South of Atlanta in Columbus, Georgia where he was recruited as both a surgeon and consultant to help structure and launch a high-level, multi-disciplinary spine surgery program with the St. Francis Hospital System.
Concurrent with his clinical practice, Dr. Westerlund has worked extensively as a consultant, implant designer, and opinion leader within the health science industry due to his recognized expertise in biomechanics and bioengineering along with his skill in the operating theater. He has become a leading expert in not only surgical, nutritional and health supplements but also osteoporosis prevention, bone and joint repair.
Dr. Westerlund is a regularly invited national speaker for a broad range of topics, including spine surgery, back and neck health, general musculoskeletal health, surgical recovery supplements, joint health and bone healing, osteoporosis and targeted vitamin and nutritional cofactor strategies to optimize healing and recovery. His interests in osteoporosis prevention as well as recovery are leading the way for joint support and bone health surgical supplement advancements.
He is an experienced and dynamic guest speaker, interviewer and presenter which has worked regularly over the years in academic settings, with private industry, and with public media outlets. He has had engagements for projects and interviews on topics ranging from new medical implant design, to molecular biologic strategies and stem cells to basic health, musculoskeletal performance and the use of vitamins and nutritional supplements for natural surgical recovery strategies.
Dr. Westerlund continues to speak and travel frequently and is available for consulting, written or recorded interviews and is as comfortable in an advanced academic setting as he is a general public audience, on the web, in the studio or in the clinical lab. He has the rare gift of scientific brilliance combined with the ability to effectively convey complex scientific concepts to a lay person in an engaging and understandable fashion.