David Alfi, DDS, MD

Dr. David Alfi is a board-certified, dual-degree oral and maxillofacial surgeon who specializes in craniofacial and orthognathic surgery and rehabilitation.

Dr. Alfi is from Los Angeles, California, and was fortunate to attend Columbia University during dental school, where there was a heavy emphasis on oral surgery and academic medicine. While earning his dental degree, Dr. Alfi became interested in the multiple specialties of oral surgery. Radiology, anesthesia, diagnoses, medical management, dentistry, surgery—the more he learned, the more he knew this was the path for him.

Dr. Alfi earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree from Columbia University School of Dental and Oral Surgery in 2006 and his Medical Degree (MD) from Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons in 2009. He completed a general surgery residency at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center and he completed his oral and maxillofacial surgery residency at Columbia University Division of OMFS.

Following his residency, Dr. Alfi joined Houston Methodist and Texas Children’s Hospital while working as an associate professor and full-scope surgeon. He wanted to expand upon a practice that focused on research, innovation, patient care, and educating future surgeons. Dr Alfi then started his own private practice with the vision to excel in surgical outcomes and advance the field with research and development of surgical techniques.

If a patient is nervous about surgery, Dr. Alfi helps them feel comfortable by knowing that the care they’re about to receive is exceptional, without compromise. To do this, he remains at the forefront of techniques and technology while supporting the patient through each step. He understands the great responsibility of caring for the health of another person, and Dr. Alfi is grateful for every opportunity to help someone achieve happiness through better health.

Education and Training

Residency

Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, New-York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY

Internship

General Surgery, New-York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY

Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS)

College of Dental Medicine, Columbia University, New York, NY

Doctor of Medicine (MD)

Vagelos College of Physician and Surgeons, Columbia Univeristy, New York, NY

Bachelors of Science (BS)

Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA

Certifications

Professional Affiliations

Fellow of the American Academy of Craniomaxillofacial Surgeons (AACMFS)

American College of Surgeons (ACS)

Greater Houston Dental Society (GHD)

American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS)

International Team for Implantology (ITI)

American Dental Association (ADA)

Texas Dental Association (TDA)

Hospital/Academic Affiliations

Adjunct Associate Professor, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX

Associate/Affiliate, Medical Staff, HCA Mercy, Miami, FL

Associate/Affiliate, Medical Staff, HCA Aventura, Aventura, FL

Associate Professor, Houston Methodist, Houston, TX

Medical Director, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX

Associate/Affiliate, Medical Staff, HCA Houston, Houston, TX

Publications

  • Destructive maxillary radiolucency in a 20-year-old female – Lee, KC; Peters, SM; Pradhan, JS; Alfi, DM; Koslovsky, DA; Philipone, EM (2021), Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology and Oral Radiology, 131(1), 3–8. DOI: 10.1016/j.oooo.2019.10.001
  • Automatic Localization of Landmarks in Craniomaxillofacial CBCT Images Using a Local Attention-Based Graph Convolution Network – Lang, Y; Lian, C; Xiao, D; Deng, H; Yuan, P; Gateno, J; Shen, SGF; Alfi, DM; Yap, PT; Xia, JJ; Shen, D (2020), in Medical Image Computing and Computer Assisted Intervention – MICCAI 2020 – Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 12264 LNCS, pp. 817–826. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-59719-1_79
  • The Use of Patient-Specific Implants in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery – Huang, MF; Alfi, D; Alfi, J; Huang, AT (2019), Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinics of North America, 31(4), 593–600. 
  • Automatic Detection of Craniomaxillofacial Anatomical Landmarks on CBCT Images using 3D Mask R-CNN [GLMI-P-10] – Lang, Y; Wang, L; Yap, P-T; Lian, C; Deng, HH; Thung, K-H; Xiao, D; Yuan, P; Shen, SGF; Gateno, J; Kuang, T; Alfi, D; Xia, JJ; Shen, D (2019). 
  • Estimating Reference Bony Shape Model for Personalized Surgical Reconstruction of Posttraumatic Facial Defects – Xiao, D; Wang, L; Deng, HH; Thung, K-H; Zhu, J; Yuan, P; Rodrigues, YL; Perez Jr., L; Crecelius, CE; Gateno, J; Kuang, T; Shen, SGF; Kim, D; Alfi, D; Yap, P-T; Xia, JJ; Shen, D (2019), Medical Image Computing and Computer-Assisted Intervention – MICCAI, 11768, pp. 327–335. 
  • A New Approach of Predicting Facial Changes following Orthognathic Surgery using Realistic Lip Sliding Effect – Kim, D; Kuang, T; Rodrigues, YL; Gateno, J; Shen, SGF; Wang, X; Deng, HH; Alfi, D; Yuan, P; Liebschner, MAK; Xia, JJ (2019), Medical Image Computing and Computer-Assisted Intervention – MICCAI, 11768, pp. 336–344. 
  • Automatic Detection of Craniomaxillofacial Anatomical Landmarks on CBCT Images Using 3D Mask R-CNN – Lang, Y; Wang, L; Yap, PT; Lian, C; Deng, H; Thung, KH; Xiao, D; Yuan, P; Shen, SGF; Gateno, J; Kuang, T; Alfi, DM; Xia, JJ; Shen, D (2019), in Graph Learning in Medical Imaging – GLMI 2019, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 11849 LNCS, pp. 130–137. 
  • Robust digital dental articulation for one-piece maxillary orthognathic surgery – Li, J; Xi, DW; Afonso, DF; Yuan, P; Huang, MF; Yao, CF; Alfi, D; Xia, JJ (2018), International Journal of Computer Assisted Radiology and Surgery, 13(S1), S120–S121. 
  • Magic wand: 3D-based interactive algorithm to accelerate CBCT segmentation – Yuan, P; Afonso, DF; Deng, HH; Li, J; Vu, J; Xi, DW; Huang, MF; Alfi, D; Gateno, J; Xia, JJ (2018), International Journal of Computer Assisted Radiology and Surgery, pp. S24–S26. 
  • Design, development and clinical validation of computer-aided surgical simulation system for streamlined orthognathic surgical planning – Yuan, P; Mai, H; Li, J; Ho, DCY; Lai, Y; Liu, S; Kim, D; Xiong, Z; Alfi, DM; Teichgraeber, JF; Gateno, J; Xia, JJ (2017), International Journal of Computer Assisted Radiology and Surgery, 12(12), 2129–2143. 
  • New approach to establish an object reference frame for dental arch in computer-aided surgical simulation – Li, J; Yuan, P; Chang, CM; Ho, DCY; Lo, YF; Shen, S; Kim, D; Teichgraeber, JF; Alfi, DM; Gateno, J; Xia, JJ (2017), International Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 46(9), 1193–1200. 
  • Tissue-engineered autologous grafts for facial bone reconstruction – Bhumiratana, S; Bernhard, JC; Alfi, DM; Yeager, K; Eton, RE; Bova, J; Shah, F; Gimble, JM; Lopez, MJ; Eisig, SB; Vunjak-Novakovic, G (2016), Science Translational Medicine, 8(343), 343 ra83. 
  • A Geometric Classification of Jaw Deformities – Gateno, J; Alfi, D; Xia, JJ; Teichgraeber, JF (2015), Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 73(12 Suppl), S26–S31. 
  • Algorithm for planning a double-jaw orthognathic surgery using a computer-aided surgical simulation (CASS) protocol. Part 2: Three-dimensional cephalometry – Xia, JJ; Gateno, J; Teichgraeber, JF; Yuan, P; Li, J; Chen, K-C; Jajoo, A; Nicol, M; Alfi, DM (2015), International Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 44(12), 1441–1450. 
  • Algorithm for planning a double-jaw orthognathic surgery using a computer-aided surgical simulation (CASS) protocol. Part 1: Planning sequence – Xia, JJ; Gateno, J; Teichgraeber, JF; Yuan, P; Chen, KC; Li, J; Zhang, X; Tang, Z; Alfi, DM (2015), International Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 44(12), 1431–1440.
  • Bad split: Anatomic or technical problem? – Gateno, J; Ferraz, F; Alfi, D (2015), Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 73(6), 1023–1024. 
  • Bupivacaine mandibular nerve block affects intraoperative blood pressure and heart rate in a Yucatan miniature swine mandibular condylectomy model: A pilot study – Bova, JF; Da Cunha, AF; Stout, RW; Bhumiratana, S; Alfi, DM; Eisig, SB; Vunjak-Novakovic, G; Lopez, MJ (2015), Journal of Investigative Surgery, 28(1), 32–39. 
  • Branchial arch syndromesAlfi, D; Lam, D; Gateno, J (2014), Atlas of the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinics of North America, 22(2), 167–173. 
  • Diagnostic imaging for submandibular duct atresia: Literature review and case report – Mandel, L; Alfi, D (2012), Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 70(12), 2819–2822. 
  • Nicotine nasal spray as an adjuvant analgesic for third molar surgery – Yagoubian, B; Akkara, J; Afzali, P; Alfi, DM; Olson, L; Conell-Price, J; Yeh, J; Eisig, SB; Flood, P (2011), Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 69(5), 1316–1319. 
  • Drug-induced paraparotid fat deposition in patients with HIV: Case reports – Mandel, L; Alfi, D (Feb 2008), Journal of the American Dental Association, 139(2), 152–157. 
  • What does the fact of advertising convey to patients? – Adamjee, A; Alfi, D; Agarwal, D; Braithwaite, Y; Chan, J; Chey, M; Cho, H; Choi, C (2005), The Journal of the American College of Dentists, 72(3), 22–23.