Amy Ladd, MD

Hand and upper extremity surgeon


Elsbach-Richards Professor of Surgery and Professor, by courtesy, of Medicine (Immunology & Rheumatology) and of Surgery (Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery)

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Additional Languages Spoken:
French , Spanish

Biography


Dr. Ladd is a fellowship-trained orthopaedic surgeon with board certification in hand surgery and orthopaedic surgery. She is the Chief of Stanford’s Chase Hand & Upper Limb Center and Chief of the Children’s Hand Clinic at Lucile Salter Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford.

Dr. Ladd is also the Elsbach-Richards Professor of Surgery and Professor, by courtesy, of Medicine (Immunology & Rheumatology) and Surgery (Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery), at Stanford University Medical Center.

As an experienced specialist in hand and upper extremity surgery, Dr. Ladd treats a wide range of conditions, including arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, Dupuytren’s disease, trigger finger, fractures, sports-related injuries, and more.

Research interests of Dr. Ladd include arthritis, musculoskeletal biomechanics, and improving patient outcomes, as well as sex/gender differences in musculoskeletal conditions. She is internationally renowned for her research on base of thumb (carpometacarpal - CMC) joint osteoarthritis, a common and debilitating disease endemic in post-menopausal women. In addition, she has developed instruments for evaluating 3D upper limb kinematics, including the golf swing.

Dr. Ladd has authored or co-authored more than 175 articles throughout the spectrum of hand surgery; biomechanics of elite performance, coordinated motion, and osteoarthritis; and general orthopaedic topics. Her work has appeared in the Journal of Hand Surgery, Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Clinical Orthopaedics & Related Research, Hand, Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, and many more publications. In addition, she holds over 30 patents, patent applications, and trademarks for technological innovations and advances related to hand surgery, arthritis, fractures, the golf swing, and musculoskeletal health.

Among her many honors and awards, Dr. Ladd’s peers named her one of the Best Doctors in America for 2 decades. She has won the Andrew Weiland award, the highest research honor for a hand surgeon, and the Emanuel B. Kaplan Excellence in Anatomy Award, both from the American Society for Surgery of the Hand. She has also won the Nicolas Andry Award for “significant contribution to musculoskeletal research” from the Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons, and the Distinguished Clinician Educator award from the American Orthopaedic Association.

Dr. Ladd is a former board member of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons and Chair of the academy’s Board of Specialties, and is the president-elect of the Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons. As part of an initiative of the US Department of the Interior, she has provided volunteer services to the population of the Navajo Nation in Chinle, AZ. She also has delivered volunteer surgical care for children with hand conditions In Vietnam.

Professional Summary


Education & Certifications
  • Fellowship: Brigham and Women's Hospital Orthopaedic Surgery Programs (1990) MA
  • Residency: University of Rochester Medical Center (1989) NY
  • Internship: Pacific Medical Center Seattle (1986) WA
  • Board Certification: American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, Hand Surgery (1994)
  • Board Certification: American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, Orthopaedic Surgery (1992)
  • Medical Education: SUNY Upstate Medical University (1984) NY
  • AB, Dartmouth College, History (1980)
  • MD, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Medicine (1984)

Honors & Awards
  • Andrew J. Weiland Medal, American Society for Surgery of the Hand (2017)
  • Best Doctors in America database, Selected by peers (2007-2013)
  • Career Development Award, OREF/RJOS/DePuy (2010)
  • Compere Award, Outstanding Scientific Paper, Twentieth Century Orthopaedic Association (2012)
  • Dean's Award for Distinguished Teaching, Stanford University (2010)
  • Distinguished Clinician Educator Award, American Orthopaedic Association (2023)
  • Emanuel B. Kaplan Excellence in Anatomy Award, American Society for Surgery of the Hand (2012)
  • Iris Litt Fund, Instititute for Women & Gender at Stanford (2004)
  • Nicolas Andry Award: "significant contribution to musculoskeletal research", Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons (2014)
  • Outstanding Faculty Physician Award, Cowell Student Health Center, Stanford University (1998)
  • Poster Exhibit Award, Best Scientific Content Honorable Mention, American Society for Surgery of the Hand Annual Meeting (2003)
  • Sterling Bunnell Traveling Fellowship, American Society for Surgery of the Hand (2000-2001)
  • Woman of Achievements award, San Jose Mercury News & Women's Fund (1997)

Memberships
  • Board member, American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (2016 - Present)
  • Chair, Board of Specialties, American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (2018 - Present)
  • Secretary, Board of Specialties, American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (2016 - 2017)
  • Chair-elect, Board of Specialties, American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (2017 - 2018)
  • President, Ruth Jackson Orthopaedic Society (2013 - 2014)
  • Board Member, Perry Outreach Initiative (2013 - Present)
  • Board Member, California Orthopaedic Association (2009 - 2013)

Administrative Appointments
  • Assistant Dean for Student Advising, Stanford University School of Medicine (2013 - Present)
  • Chief of Chase Hand & Upper Limb Center, Stanford University School of Medicine (2005 - Present)
  • Chief of the Children's Hand Clinic, Lucile Salter Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford (1991 - Present)
  • Chief, Hand and Upper Extremity Section, Department of Surgery, Palo Alto VA Medical Center, Palo Alto, CA (1990 - 1998)
  • Head of Outreach, SUMMIT (Stanford University Medical Media Information Technologies) (2001 - 2004)
  • Professor - Med Center Line (by courtesy), Plastic/Reconstructive Surgery (2005 - Present)
  • Vice-Chair, Academic Affairs, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery (2014 - Present)

Publications

Clinical Trials

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Practice Locations


Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine in Redwood City Redwood City, CA
Redwood City, CA

450 Broadway Street

Redwood City , CA 94063

(650) 723-5643

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Patient Ratings

(178 Ratings)

Overall Rating
4.8/5

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4.9/5
Friendliness
Friendliness/courtesy of the care provider
4.8/5
Explanations
Explanations the care provider gave you about your problem or condition
4.8/5
Listens
Concern the care provider showed for your questions or worries
4.8/5
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Care provider's efforts to include you in decisions about your treatment
4.8/5
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The Patients Ratings and comments are gathered from our Patient Satisfaction Survey and displayed in their entirety.

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Patient Reviews

(138 reviews)

Dr. Ladd's reputation as an extremely skilled surgeon is well warranted and in her followup care she demonstrates genuine interest and concern about progress in the healing process
doctor did not show up after waiting one hour
So far so good! I find her thorough, direct. Her confidence is reassuring. I notice that she doesn't offer "promises", but possibilities.
There is a huge difference in going to Stanford outside the tri-valley. Stanford in Pleasanton is awful but I found this appointment with Dr. Ladd and her team excellent!
An excellent caring physician
Dr. Ladd is superb
Excellent and thorough
Dr. Ladd, Lindsay and Melissa in the cast room are exceptional. Everyone from the front desk to my coordinator Adrianna and radiology have been amazing.
I couldn't have expected anything better
Top expert in her field and personable and easy to communicate with on top of it
Highly recommend Dr Amy Ladd
Wait times were on the longer side and could be worked on...
Dr. Ladd is phenomenal! I also have excellent interactions with the fellows, and the staff are friendly and efficient.
highly professional, responsive and caring!
Great service
Dr. Ladd is a miracle worker!!!
Dr. is great and so is staff. Genuine interest and care.
Dr. Ladd is exceptional
Dr. Ladd is great!!
Everyone I spoke with at each step of my process was incredibly friendly and kind, and made my experience painless and efficient!
Excellent physician
She answered my questions very well
Listened to what had to say!
Great team.
Dr. Ladd And her staff are excellent in every way. Thanks so much for a great patient care. It is greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Dr. Ladd and her team are excellent.
Well done
All went very well. Dr. Ladd ad her PA, Lindsay were wonderful!
She is exceptional! Pleasant, down to earth, knowledgeable. Perfect.
Dr. Ladd and Lindsay the N.P. were both very kind, knowledgeable and helpful with me. Answered all of my questions.
Both Dr. Ladd and Nurse Practitioner Simpson were attentive, thorough and clear.
Excellent care and always feel listened to.
I have always had a wonderful experience
Everyone is so friendly and caring.
She’s an excellent doctor.
Exceptional care Friendly efficient staff
Dry Ladd and her fellow are top notch. Very thorough and took plenty of time to explain their findings and next steps
I highly recommend Dr. Ladd to anyone who needs to see a specialist for hand issues. I am extremely happy with the results from my surgeries she has performed.
Dr. Ladd was so kind and I knew from my first visit I was in good hands, both she and her staff are wonderful
She listens to my concerns and issues.
Professional and on time.
Dr. Ladd has met with me twice regarding my hand issues. She has been able to address my issues & we have developed a plan to relieve my hand pain. She was friendly, calm & explained things clearly in a way I could understand.
She's the best
Her diagnosis was totally consistent with my feelings and impressions of what is reasonable
Dr Ladd and her staff are excellent!
Dr. Ladd was wonderful and the X-Ray tech was very good. I apologize, I forget her name.
Everyone was friendly and welcoming and helpful.
Excellent patient interaction skills and extremely knowledgeable
excellent
excellent care!!
Each person I encountered in the process of checking in, x-rays, exam, etc., was attentive, peasant, and informed.
Great doctor!
excellent attentive care
Wrote everything on pre appt docs. No one read it so labs were. Scheduled after visit which prolonged my appt
Always an amazing contact. Professional. Caring!
great staff
Doctors listen and provide clear answers to my questions. Everyone is very professional and courteous
A very pleasant experience from check in to leaving!
Amy Ladd is a gift that I consider myself blessed to receive. Beyond being a world-class expert in her field, she is personable and friendly while remaining completely professional and offering the highest quality of care available anywhere, which I believe is a rare combination of traits. I feel as though she cares about my love for playing the piano, and she understands how important that is to my overall well-being. To say I am grateful for her in my life is a significant understatement.
I am very impressed with the care I received at Stanford. Everyone was warm and welcoming and competent.
I found Dr. Ladd to be informative and confident in my screening interview with her and her team. She listened very well and answered all my questions, such that I could decide to prceed with scheduling a surgery.
She listens carefully and never interrupts
excellent experience !
Most pleasant and caring doctor’!
Very engaged and helpful with feedback
I always appreciate the professionalism and also the kind character of the entire staff particularly Dr Ladd
Everyone was very professional and treated me with care & concern. Dr. Ladd and her assistant have excellent ‘bedside manners’. I appreciate that.
Dr. Ladd and staff are the greatest!
Dr. Ladd is the best!
Dr. Ladd is an excellent surgeon and a genuinely kind person.
Great doctor. Very professional, pleasant & confident.
Amy Ladd and team are excellent
I have already recommended her and her team!
She is famous, and that is apparently well-earned. I felt very fortunate to have Amy Ladd helping me. Almost unworthy…
Dr. Ladd and her staff are outstanding
Ultimately I needed a diagnosis and treatment plan, and I received those today. I would have benefited from an earlier appointment and less of a hassle factor, but for an accurate diagnosis and treatment, it was still worth it.
Dr. Amy Ladd is the best
Dr. Ladd is amazing - thorough, kind, takes time to provide information and answer questions and inclusive in my care plan.
The clinician is superb and I feel very confident with her professional expertise.
Amy Ladd is great - would recommend her highly!
Big Stanford booster
Dr. Amy Ladd is excellent!
Excellant
Dr Ladd is world-class in every respect
I would give Dr. Ladd all "6's" if I could. She is excellent!
perfect
Respected Dr. Ladd from recommendations from 2 MDs. Thought she was an extremely knowledgeable and competent doctor. Check in again after the second surgery. After the first, there was great improvement in the condition.
Very good.
Dr. Amy Ladd is the greatest is the greatest surgeon in the world! She is knowledgeable, caring, and is informed about latest procedures/technology. I wish every speciality could have a Dr. Ladd.
Dr. Ladd is the best!
Dr. Ladd is the best!
Dr. Ladd is wonderful. She didn't need to discuss medications with me during this visit.
Dr. Ladd and her staff are excellent. I have recommended her to a few of my colleagues and patients.
Dr Ladd is a very good communicator
I received awesome care from Dr. Ladd & entire staff involved in my medical care.
Amy Ladd was the dr. for two of our friends - they would not go any place else see any other hand dr. She is wonderful.
excellent!
The best, hands down!!
Amy Ladd is excellent. I like her and I trust her.
Dr. Ladd is amazing. Very highly skilled practitioner with excellent communication skills. The entire staff has been fantastic, and of incredible assistance!
very pleased with my surgeon and her staff. have recommended her to a friend with similar issues
Dr. Ladd is a rockstar in the operating room. Her skill and calm demeanor translate to her entire team, making the unit efficient and effective.
Both doctors I saw were very helpful & informative.
Dr. Amy Ladd performed a 100% successful carpal/cubital tunnel surgery in the past. I highly recommend her to everyone
very thorough, better understand my condition and prognosis as a result
Very happy with my appointment with Dr. Ladd
Dr. Amy Ladd is an outstanding doctor & surgeon; personally related and thoroughly informative.
Dr. Amy Ladd is EXCELLENT!
Stanford is very fortunate to have Dr. Ladd on their facility & clinical services talented physician.
I contine to have the utmost confidence in Dr. Amy Ladd. Her expertise, professionalism. and personal presence continue to support me through my treatment, surgery and ongoing recovery.
Amy's great!
I saw three other doctors for my wrist before I saw Dr. Ladd. She is by far the best doctor I have seen.
Dr. Ladd is a wonderful physician/surgeon--highly competent and personable. Her resident was also friendly and knowledgeable.
Dr. Ladd is very caring and professional.
Dr. Ladd is very knowledgable about my specific problem and is more than capable at fixing it. in fact she repaired another finger 20 years ago, and I have had no problems with it to date. now that the procedure has been modified, I. expect even better results.
Dr. Ladd was calm and gave me the time I needed to understand.
Dr. Ladd is very good.
Dr. Any Ladd is an exceptional surgeon - she has done knuckle replacements on both hands and a joint replacement on my left hand ring finger.
Amazing staff!
I learned alot more than i had from 3 previous care providers elsewhere
They were over an hour behind schedule, we were kept informed about the delay.
Accurately and quickly diagnosed issue and prescribed effective, immediate treatment providing fast relief.
A little condescending.
I like how Dr. Ladd records her notes in front of the patient and asks for confirmation that it sounded right with the patient. Her explanation of my diagnosis and net steps for surgery was the right level of detail.
Doctor - in and out! Maybe 10 MIN.?
Dr. Amy Ladd is great. I couldn't be more pleased with her.
The xray tech was very nice. The nurse practitioner seemed very competent. Dr Ladd was more concerned about my problem that related to her specialty than my more pressing concerns. When I made the appointment, I listed the problems to the person on the phone. That information apparently did not make it to Dr Ladd ahead of me, since the only xrays ordered were for her specialty, not my more pressing concerns.
I postponed surgery and that was okay and supported by the doctors.
Dr. Ladd made eye contact & treated me as an intelligent person with an interesting condition.
excellent service -
I was very impressed with Dr. Ladd and her fellow/intern/guest doctors. They were very kind & clearly experts in their field.
Dr. Ladd was amazing. I'd been to several drs. & this was my second surgery on my hand. All others told me that I had few options. She gave me an option & it worked! Thanks to her excellent surgical skill, practical approach & high standards.
Did not rush, very thorough in explaining my problem and options.
Dr. Ladd is the best!
I especially liked that she dictated her note while I was present.
Incredible group of people - and they're ALL excellent. They finally identified and explained a 20-year progressive problem and worked with me on a plan for what can be done.
would like more care provider time after surgery to understand how it went - details.
Great!

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