About Dr. Kim Jeffrey Garges, MD
Dr. Kim J. Garges is a board-certified orthopedic spine surgeon serving patients in Webster, Texas and the surrounding Houston-area communities. His background includes decades of experience in spine surgery, spinal biomechanics, surgical education, and the treatment of cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine conditions.
Dr. Garges graduated from Tulane University School of Medicine with honors and was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society. He completed a general surgery internship at Ochsner Hospital in New Orleans, followed by an orthopedic surgery residency at the University of Maryland / Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, where he served as Chief Resident in Orthopaedic Traumatology. He then completed a spine surgery fellowship at the San Francisco Spine Institute.
In 1999, Dr. Garges joined the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston as full-time faculty. During his time at UTMB, he served as Associate Professor, Chief of Spinal Surgery, and Director of a nationally and internationally recognized spine surgery program. He trained spine surgeons from the United States and several other countries while also directing an accredited spinal surgery fellowship program.
Dr. Garges served on the faculty in both orthopedic surgery and neurosurgery, helping train residents and fellows while continuing to develop a busy clinical spine surgery practice. His academic and clinical work has included research involving cervical spine surgery, thoracic spine conditions, lumbar spine disorders, spinal biomechanics, patient safety, and minimally invasive spine surgery techniques.
Since 2008, Dr. Garges has been in private practice in the Nassau Bay and Webster, Texas area. He also remains affiliated with UTMB as a Clinical Assistant Professor.
Dr. Garges is board certified and is a member of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, the North American Spine Society, and state and local orthopedic and medical associations. He is also a past board member of the Association for Ethics in Spine Surgery and previously served on the North American Spine Society Committee on Complementary Medicine.
His research interests include spinal biomechanics, safety in spine surgery, minimally invasive surgical techniques, and improving the understanding of cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spinal disorders. His publications and research have appeared in journals including Spine, Journal of Neurosurgery, The Spine Journal, and Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery.
Before attending medical school, Dr. Garges earned a Doctor of Chiropractic degree with honors and also served on the faculty at the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic. His combined background in chiropractic, orthopedic surgery, and spinal biomechanics provides additional perspective regarding spinal function, movement, rehabilitation, and surgical decision-making.
Dr. Garges’ approach to spine care emphasizes careful evaluation, imaging review, functional assessment, and individualized treatment planning. Depending on the patient’s condition, treatment recommendations may include non-surgical management, physical therapy, spinal injections, minimally invasive procedures, decompression surgery, spinal fusion surgery, or other surgical options when appropriate.
Post-M.D. Graduate Training
Fellowship
Spine Surgery
San Francisco Spine Institute / SpineCare Medical Group
Daly City, California
Residency
Orthopaedic Surgery
University of Maryland Medical System / Shock Trauma Center
Baltimore, Maryland
Internship
General Surgery Internship
Ochsner Medical Foundation
New Orleans, Louisiana
Medical & Pre-Medical Education
Doctor of Medicine
Tulane University
New Orleans, Louisiana
Doctor of Chiropractic
National College of Chiropractic
Lombard, Illinois
Bachelor of Science – Human Biology
National College of Chiropractic
Lombard, Illinois
Selected Publications & Research
Dr. Garges has authored and contributed to publications involving cervical spine surgery, spinal biomechanics, spinal instability, minimally invasive spine surgery, spinal trauma, spinal infection, and patient safety in spine surgery.
- Research involving spinal biomechanics and lumbar spine stability
- Studies related to cervical spine surgical approaches and vertebral artery anatomy
- Publications on wrong-level spine surgery and patient safety
- Research involving minimally invasive lumbar decompression techniques
- Clinical and biomechanical studies involving cervical and lumbar spine disorders
- Research on spinal instability, spondylolisthesis, spinal trauma, and spinal rehabilitation
His work has been published in peer-reviewed journals including Spine, Journal of Neurosurgery, The Spine Journal, and Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery.
Patient-Centered Spine Care
Dr. Garges evaluates patients with a wide range of spine-related symptoms and conditions involving the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine. His practice focuses on careful diagnosis, understanding how symptoms affect function and quality of life, reviewing prior imaging and treatment history, and discussing appropriate treatment options based on the individual patient’s condition.
Conditions commonly evaluated include neck pain, lower back pain, arm pain, leg pain, numbness, tingling, weakness, spinal stenosis, herniated discs, degenerative disc disease, spinal instability, scoliosis, and other spine-related disorders.