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Portrait of Lawrence Yao
Lawrence Yao, MD

Special Volunteer, Clinical Staff


Radiology and Imaging Sciences


BA, Brown University
MD, Brown University


Email: lyao@cc.nih.gov
Phone:301-827-0605

Portrait of Lawrence Yao
Lawrence Yao, MD

Special Volunteer, Clinical Staff


Radiology and Imaging Sciences


BA, Brown University
MD, Brown University


Email: lyao@cc.nih.gov
Phone:301-827-0605


Dr. Yao is a Special Volunteer at the Radiology and Imaging Sciences.


Dr. Yao earned his undergraduate and medical degrees through the Medical Education Program at Brown University. After serving a medical internship at the Brown-affiliated Miriam Hospital, he completed radiology residency training at the Albany Medical Center Hospital, and a fellowship in musculoskeletal imaging at UCLA.

Dr. Yao was a member of the radiology faculty at UCLA and then at Georgetown University, where he served as the Director of MRI. Dr. Yao served as a medical officer and director of technology integration for MedTel International Corporation, a global telemedicine startup, before joining the NIH in 2002 as a musculoskeletal imaging specialist. He also served as the director of the MR section in radiology until 2006. He currently operates a private, sub-specialized diagnostic imaging service.

Dr. Yao is interested in the optimization of MRI techniques for clinical problem solving in orthopedics. He collaborates with research groups at NIH that study inflammatory myopathy, graft-versus-host disease, and ankylosing spondylitis.

Boutin RD, Kaptuch JM, Bateni CP, Chalfant JS, Yao L. Influence of IV Contrast Administration on CT Measures of Muscle and Bone Attenuation: Implications for Sarcopenia and Osteoporosis Evaluation. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2016 Nov;207(5):1046-1054.

Carlson VR, Boden BP, Shen A, Jackson JN, Yao L, Sheehan FT. The Tibial Tubercle-Trochlear Groove Distance Is Greater in Patients With Patellofemoral Pain. Am J Sports Med. 2016 Dec 1:363546516681002.

Boutin RD, Yao L, Canter RJ, Lenchik L. Sarcopenia: Current Concepts and Imaging Implications. Am J Roentgenol 2015;205(3):W255-66.

Tan S, Yao J, Flynn JA, Yao L, Ward MM. Quantitative syndesmophyte measurement in ankylosing spondylitis using CT: longitudinal validity and sensitivity to change over 2 years. Ann Rheum Dis. 2015;74(2);437-43.

Yao L, Boutin RD, Gai N. Axial Scan Orientation and the Tibial Tubercle-Trochlear Groove Distance: Error Analysis and Correction. Am J Roentgenol 2014;202(6):1291-6.

Tan S, Yao J, Flynn JA, Yao L, Ward MM. Quantitative measurement of syndesmophyte volume and height in ankylosing spondylitis using CT. Ann Rheum Dis. 2014; 73(3):544-50.

Yao L, Gai N. Fat-corrected T2 measurement as a marker of active muscle disease in inflammatory myopathy. Am J Roentgenol. 2012 May;198(5).

Clark J, Yao L, Pavletic SZ, Krumlauf M, Mitchell S, Turner ML, Cowen EW. Magnetic resonance imaging in sclerotic-type chronic graft-vs-host disease. Arch Dermatol. 2009;145(8):918-22.

Yao L, Gai N. Median nerve cross-sectional area and MRI diffusion characteristics: normative values at the carpal tunnel. Skeletal Radiol. 2009;38(4):355-61.

Yao L, Pitts JT, Thomasson D. Isotropic 3D fast spin-echo with proton-density-like contrast: A comprehensive approach to musculoskeletal MRI. Am J Roentgenol 2007;188(2):W199-201.

Yao L, Magalnick M, Wilson M, Lipsky P, Goldbach-Mansky R. Periarticular bone findings in rheumatoid arthritis: T2-weighted versus contrast-enhanced T1-weighted MRI. Am J Roentgenol. 2006;187(2):358-63.

Yao L, Stanczak J, Boutin RD. Presumptive subarticular stress reactions of the knee: MRI detection and association with meniscal tear patterns. Skeletal Radiol 2004;33:260-264.

Yao L, Thomasson D. Magnetization transfer contrast in rapid three-dimensional MR imaging using segmented radiofrequency prepulses. AJR 2002;179:863-865.

Sinha U, Yao L. In vivo diffusion tensor imaging of human calf muscle. J Magn Reson Imaging 2002;15(1):87-95.

Yao L, Sinha U. Imaging the microcirculatory proton fraction of muscle with diffusion-weighted echo-planar imaging. Academic Radiology 2000;1;27-32.

Yao L, Nelson SD, Seeger LL, Eckardt JJ, Eilber FR. Primary musculoskeletal neoplasms. Effectiveness of core-needle biopsy. Radiology 1999; 212:682-686.


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This page last updated on 05/17/2021

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