Dr. Charles Edwards came to the University of Maryland at Baltimore from Yale University in 1976.  He co-founded and directed the Spinal Injury Service at Maryland’s Shock-Trauma Center and became Chief of Orthopedic Surgery for University of Maryland Hospital and School of Medicine.  During this period, Dr. Edwards developed several new surgical procedures that improved the outcome of patients with major neck and back injuries.  Dr. Edwards and his associate, Dr. Levine subsequently conducted and published numerous studies on the treatment of spinal trauma.

During the 1980s, Dr. Edwards focused on spinal biomechanics and the development of instrumentation and operations that permitted greater correction of major deformities with less invasive surgery than previously possible. Clinical research documented improved corrections for patients with high-grade spondylolisthesis, kyphosis and scoliosis. Numerous publications and national scientific presentations brought wide recognition to the spine program at the University of Maryland.

In response to increasing numbers of visiting surgeons, Dr. Edwards founded the post-graduate Fellowship in Spinal Surgery in 1986 and presently serves as Fellowship Director.  This one year Fellowship has trained over 20 orthopedic and neurosurgeons to become recognized experts in the field.  In 1988, Dr. Edwards founded the Spinal Fixation Study Group.  Its members are established spinal surgeons from across the country that come to Baltimore to attend workshops in order to learn new methods and participate in ongoing clinical research studies to improve spinal surgery.

Dr. Edwards credits much of the strength of the Maryland spine program to its dedicated staff, talented researchers, and such notable partners over the years as Dr. Alan Levine, Dr. Alexander Curcin and Dr. Spiro Antoniades. Dr. Antoniades is the co-founder of the Maryland Spine Center.  He is an honors graduate of Johns Hopkins Medical School who left the George Washington University Orthopedic faculty in 1999 to join the Maryland spine program.

Dr. Edwards and Antoniades joined the Mercy Medical Center in June 2002.

Dr. Charles C Edwards II, son of Dr. Edwards, joined the Maryland Spine Center first as a research fellow in September 2002 and then as a full partner in 2003.  Dr. Charles C Edwards II is an AOA honors graduate of the University of Maryland School of Medicine and has successfully completed a spinal surgery fellowship with Drs. Bridwell, Lenke and Riew at the Washington University Department of Orthopaedic Surgery in St. Louis, Missouri. His research interests include cervical degenerative disorders, and spinal deformities affecting adults and children. He has authored over 20 peer-reviewed original scientific articles, and has over 40 invited presentations at national and international scientific meetings.