Spine Executive Vice Chair, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Program Director, Harvard Combined Orthopaedic Residency Program Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Harvard Medical School
Dr. Christopher M. Bono is an experienced adult spine surgeon with particular interest in the management of cervical and lumbar degenerative disorders. He is a national and international leader in spinal research and evidence-based medicine, enabling him to incorporate the latest treatment data into patient discussion for informed surgical decision-making.
Dr. Bono is a board-certified, fellowship-trained adult spine surgeon in the Orthopaedic Spine Center at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Bono obtained his medical degree (MD) from the State University of New York (SUNY) Health Science Center at Brooklyn (now called SUNY Downstate Medical Center). He next completed his orthopaedic residency at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey Medical School (now called Rutgers New Jersey Medical School). Dr. Bono completed a spine surgery fellowship at the University of California, San Diego.
Dr. Bono specializes in cervical spinal stenosis, cervical myelopathy, cervical disc herniations, lumbar spinal stenosis, lumbar disc herniations, and lumbar spondylolisthesis.
Dr. Bono is Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Harvard Medical School. He is past president of the North American Spine Society (2015-2016) and continues to be quite active in a number of committees. Dr. Bono is the current Editor-in-Chief of The Spine Journal, which holds the highest impact factor among journals dedicated to spine. Dr. Bono is also a member of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Cervical Spine Research Society, and the International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine, holding or having held many leadership positions in these societies as well.
Makanji H, Schoenfeld AJ, Bhalla A, Bono CM. Critical analysis of trends in lumbar fusion for degenerative disorders revisited: influence of technique on fusion rate and clinical outcomes. Eur Spine J. 2018 Mar 15.
Miller LE, McGirt MJ, Garfin SR, Bono CM. Association of Annular Defect Width After Lumbar Discectomy With Risk of Symptom Recurrence and Reoperation: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Comparative Studies. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2018 Mar 1;43(5):E308-E315.
Fehlings MG, Kopjar B, Ibrahim A, Tetreault LA, Arnold PM, Defino H, Kale SS, Yoon ST, Barbagallo GM, Bartels RHM, Zhou Q, Vaccaro AR, Zileli M, Tan G, Yukawa Y, Brodke DS, Shaffrey CI, Santos de Moraes O, Woodard EJ, Scerrati M, Tanaka M, Toyone T, Sasso RC, Janssen ME, Gokaslan ZL, Alvarado M, Bolger C, Bono CM, Dekutoski MB. Geographic variations in clinical presentation and outcomes of decompressive surgery in patients with symptomatic degenerative cervical myelopathy: analysis of a prospective, international multicenter cohort study of 757 patients. Spine J. 2018 Apr;18(4):593-605.
Schoenfeld AJ, Sturgeon DJ, Burns CB, Hunt TJ, Bono CM. Establishing benchmarks for the volume-outcome relationship for common lumbar spine surgical procedures. Spine J. 2018 Jan;18(1):22-28.
En'Wezoh DC, Leonard DA, Schoenfeld AJ, Harris MB, Zampini JM, Bono CM. Relationship between size of disc and early postoperative outcomes after lumbar discectomy. Arch Orthop Trauma Surg. 2017 Jun;137(6):805-811.
Reviews: Comments and Ratings
4.9out of 5(113 Ratings, 49 Comments)
January 2025
Dr Bono was quite helpful in explaining the issues that pertained to my lower back and the treatment options. I would definitely recommend Dr Bono to anyone that I know.
January 2025
I am in good hands
January 2025
The provider, the facility, and the staff were amazing. [redacted]
January 2025
Excellent care by ALL members of the MGH team from check-in, X-Ray, Resident and Doctor. Can't recommend the experience any higher. Never going anywhere else. Recovery was remarkable and the flexibility the scheduling staff demonstrated was extraordinary.
January 2025
The resident Dr. [redacted] spent a lot of time in detailed review. He was very comprehensive and confident. Dr. Bono was a joy to meet. His experience and knowledge was extraordinary. His explanations were concise and thorough. Although I am thrilled that I will NOT have to have surgery, I would certainly feel comfortable and confident in his ... Read More
The resident Dr. [redacted] spent a lot of time in detailed review. He was very comprehensive and confident. Dr. Bono was a joy to meet. His experience and knowledge was extraordinary. His explanations were concise and thorough. Although I am thrilled that I will NOT have to have surgery, I would certainly feel comfortable and confident in his ability to provide me with the best and most appropriate treatment needed. I am grateful that he agreed to evaluate me and for his opinion and advice.
January 2025
He's great!
December 2024
Dr. Bono was very responsive. He helped me with... He has helped me for over 20 years and he is a wonderful physician. He knows my problems and my issues thoroughly and is very attentive to detail and to listening to all of my issues.
November 2024
Dr Bono was very thorough with results and feed back
October 2024
I followed Chris from B&W to MG, what else can I say.
Please join us in congratulating the 13 Mass General orthopaedic surgeons named Top Doctors by Boston magazine for 2022. This impressive achievement is a testament to the commitment of our clinical team to providing safe, high-quality care while ensuring an exceptional patient experience.
Please join us in congratulating the 13 Mass General orthopaedic surgeons named Top Doctors by Boston magazine for 2022. This impressive achievement is a testament to the commitment of our clinical team to providing safe, high-quality care while ensuring an exceptional patient experience.
Please join us in congratulating the 13 Mass General orthopaedic surgeons named Top Doctors by Boston magazine for 2022. This impressive achievement is a testament to the commitment of our clinical team to providing safe, high-quality care while ensuring an exceptional patient experience.
Dr Bono was quite helpful in explaining the issues that pertained to my lower back and the treatment options. I would definitely recommend Dr Bono to anyone that I know.
I am in good hands
The provider, the facility, and the staff were amazing. [redacted]
Excellent care by ALL members of the MGH team from check-in, X-Ray, Resident and Doctor. Can't recommend the experience any higher. Never going anywhere else. Recovery was remarkable and the flexibility the scheduling staff demonstrated was extraordinary.
The resident Dr. [redacted] spent a lot of time in detailed review. He was very comprehensive and confident. Dr. Bono was a joy to meet. His experience and knowledge was extraordinary. His explanations were concise and thorough. Although I am thrilled that I will NOT have to have surgery, I would certainly feel comfortable and confident in his ... Read More
He's great!
Dr. Bono was very responsive. He helped me with... He has helped me for over 20 years and he is a wonderful physician. He knows my problems and my issues thoroughly and is very attentive to detail and to listening to all of my issues.
Dr Bono was very thorough with results and feed back
I followed Chris from B&W to MG, what else can I say.
Dr. Bono is ICONIC!