Alvin Wong, MD

A doctor working to lift patients’ burdens

Alvin Wong, MD is a plastic surgeon who is committed to answering every question posed by each patient under his team’s care.

He treats people of all ages, including newborns with congenital developmental issues, young adults with traumatic injuries, and older patients coping with chronic health conditions.

“Plastic surgery is more of a set of tools for problem-solving than it is a specific area of expertise,” Wong says. “As a plastic surgeon, I work to help solve the one-of-a-kind problems my patients are facing.”

He specializes in craniofacial surgery, facial reanimation, head and neck reconstruction, general pediatric plastic surgery, and other procedures.

Wong is particularly interested in caring for children who have a cleft lip or palate, facial nerve injuries, and other conditions. He’s part of the team at the Children’s Hospital of Richmond where he’s establishing a pediatric soft-tissue reconstruction program.

His job is to heal wounds and restore function. It’s a medical practice that requires hard work, dedication, and a team-based approach to following a treatment plan that’s focused on each patient’s unique needs.

He sees patients at VCU Health’s Adult Outpatient Pavilion, the Children’s Pavilion, and the Stony Point 9109 building in South Richmond. He’s always eager to sit down with patients to discuss how he’s going to address their health needs.

“I strive to ease the burdens borne by each patient,” Wong says. “At the end of each visit, I want them to completely understand their care plan before heading home.”

Dr. Wong joined the CHoR faculty in 2022. He is a member of the following professional organizations:

• Howard C. Naffziger Surgical Society, member
• American Society of Plastic Surgeons, candidate member
• Plastic Surgery Research Council, candidate member
• American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association, member
• Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Peer Reviewer
• Annals of Plastic Surgery Peer Reviewer

Advice to patients: “Remember that you never have to shoulder your burden alone. Lean on friends, family, and your team here at VCU in your time of need.”

• Wong A, Lance SH, Gosman AA. Treatment of unicoronal craniosynostosis by rotational flap technique preserves blood supply to the frontal bone flap. Annals of Plastic Surgery. 2022 May; 88(4): S348-350.
• Segal RM, Wong A, Zaldana-Flynn M, Englar K, Ewing E, Lance SH, Gosman AA. Tissue expander-assisted component separation for pediatric abdominal wall reconstruction. Annals of Plastic Surgery. 2022 May; 88(4): S320-324.
• Segal RM, Wong A, Gosman AA, Lance SH. The Use of Intraoperative Local Anesthetic Blocks to Decrease Postoperative Opioid Use in Plastic Surgery Patients. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery - Global Open. 2021 Oct; 9(10S): 120-121.
• Kamel G, Wong A, Segal RM, Carbullido MK, Hornacek M, Ewing E, Lance SH, Gosman AA. (2021) A single-center retrospective review of perioperative complications and reoperation rates between open cranial vault remodeling and distraction osteogenesis for unilateral coronal craniosynostosis. Journal of Craniofacial Surgery. 2021 Oct; 32(7): 2373-2378.
• Wong A, Wali AR, Ryba B, Gupta M, Levy ML, Gosman AA. (2020) Rotation flap distraction osteogenesis for unicoronal synostosis. Journal of Neurosurgery Neurosurgical Focus: Video. April 2021. Volume 4, Number 2. DOI: 10.3171/2021.1.FOCVID20124
• Wong A, Garcia SG, Tamaki S, Striedinger K, Barruet E, Hansen S, Young DM, Pomerantz JH. Satellite cells activation and retention of muscle regenerative potential after long term denervation. Stem Cells. 2021 Mar; 39(3): 331-344.
• Barruet E, Garcia SG, Striedinger K, Wu J, Lee S, Byrnes L, Wong A, Sun X, Brack AS, Tamaki S, Pomerantz JH. Functionally heterogenous human satellite cells identified by single cell RNA sequencing. Elife. April 1, 2020.
• Wong A, Sbitany H. Reconstruction of intrapelvic defects using the free anterolateral thigh flap: expanding the traditional algorithm. Annals of Plastic Surgery. 2020 Mar; 84(5): 554-558.
• Wong A, Pomerantz JH. The role of muscle stem cells in regeneration and recovery after denervation: a review. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. 2019 Mar; 10(3): 1160-1174.
• Garcia SG, Tamaki S, Lee S, Wong A, Jose A, Dreux J, Kouklis G, Sbitany H, Seth R, Knott PD, Heaton C, Ryan W, Kim E, Hansen S, Hoffman WY, Pomerantz JH. High-yield purification, preservation, and serial transplantation of human satellite cells. Stem Cell Reports. 2018 Mar 13; 10(3): 1160¬-1174.
• Wong A, Lee S, Nathan NS, Wang F, Hansen SL, Harris HW, Sbitany H. Postoperative prophylactic antibiotic use following ventral hernia repair with placement of surgical drains reduces postoperative surgical site infection rate. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. 2016 Jan; 137(1): 285-294.
• Wu JK, Kitajewski C, Reiley M, Keung CH, Monteagudo J, Andrews JP, Liou P, Thirumoorthi A, Wong A, Kandel JJ, Shawber CJ. Abberant lymphatic endothelial progenitors in lymphatic malformation development. PLoS One. 2015 Feb 26; 10(2): e0117352.
• England R, Hardy KL, Kitajewski AM, Wong A, Kitajewski JK, Shawber CJ, Wu, JK. Propranolol promotes accelerated and dysregulated adipogenesis in hemangioma stem cells. Annals of Plastic Surgery. 2014 Sept; 73: S119-124.
• Wong A, Hardy KL, Kitajewski AM, Shawber CJ, Kitajewski JK, Wu JK. Propranolol accelerates adipogenesis in hemangioma stem cells and causes apoptosis of hemangioma endothelial cells. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. 2012 Nov; 130(5): 1012-21.
• Wong A & Wu JK. (2012). Infantile Hemangiomas: A Disease Model in the Study of Vascular Development, Aberrant Vasculogenesis and Angiogenesis. In Sophia Ran (Ed.), Tumor Angiogenesis (pp. 213-230). Rijeka, Croatia: InTech.
• Adepoju O, Wong A, Kitajewski A, Tong K, Boscolo E, Bischoff J, Kitajewski J, Wu JK. Expression of HES and HEY Genes in Infantile Hemangiomas. Vascular Cell. 2011 Aug 11; 3(19).
• Chang CS, Wong A, Rohde CH, Ascherman JA, Wu JK. Management of Lip Hemangiomas: Minimizing Peri-oral Scars. Journal of Plastic, Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgery. 2012 Feb; 65(2):163-168.
• Raper D, Wong A, McCormick PC, Lewis LD. Herpes Simplex Encephalitis Following Spinal Ependymoma Resection: Case Report and Literature Review. Journal of Neuro-oncology. 2011 July; 103(3): 771-6.
• Edelberg JM, Wong A, Holm JM, Xaymardan M, Duignan I, Chin A, Kizer JR, Cai D. Phage display identification of ageassociated TNFalpha-mediated cardiac oxidative induction. Physiological Genomics. 2004 Aug 11; 18(3):255-60.