John P. DiFiori, MD, FACSM, FAMSSM

Dr. John DiFiori is Chief of the Primary Sports Medicine Service and Attending Physician at Hospital for Special Surgery. Prior to HSS, Dr. DiFiori was Chief of the UCLA Division of Sports Medicine and Non-Operative Orthopaedics. He was Head Team Physician for the UCLA Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, overseeing the care of more than 650 athletes in 24 NCAA sports. He spent more than 15 years on the sidelines with the Bruins football and basketball teams.

Dr. DiFiori's expertise in treating sports injuries in competitive athletes is internationally recognized. He serves as the Director of Sports Medicine for the NBA, where he is involved with the League’s research initiatives, and the development and implementation of all policies related to player health and safety. He has also been appointed to the FIBA (international basketball federation) Medical Commission where he serves to work with basketball federations across the world in setting standards for player health.

He is a former President of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine, the largest organization of sports medicine physicians in the US. He is distinguished as being named a fellow of both the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine. Dr. DiFiori recently presented at the 2020 Scandinavian Sports Medicine Congress, in Copenhagen, Denmark. He was honored to be the only American physician invited to provide scientific presentations at the three day event. He spoke on youth sports injuries, injury prevention  and the hot topic of early single sport specialization in young athletes.

Dr. DiFiori is the lead author for the recently published NBA Youth Basketball Guidelines, and the AMSSM Position Statement on Overuse Injuries and Burnout in Youth Sports. He serves on the editorial boards of Current Sports Medicine Reports and the Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine.

Dr. DiFiori has served as a medical consultant for the NHL Players Association. He has also served for the USOC as a US team physician for several international competitions, including for US Soccer, USA Basketball, and the XIII Pan American Games.

Dr. DiFiori’s sports medicine practice at HSS focuses on the care of competitive athletes and active individuals of all ages.

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