(
out of
49
reviews
)
Specialties
Board Certification
|
American Board of Urology (Sub: Pediatric Urology)
|
Patient Rating
Reviewers overwhelmingly praise Dr. Schaeffer for his surgical skill, thorough explanations, patience, and responsiveness, often noting that he makes families feel at ease and provides strong follow-up care. Many comment that he takes time to answer questions, explains complex issues in understandable terms, and is available after surgery. A minority reported mixed experiences, mentioning that a fellow did most of the visit without clear introductions, difficulty connecting with a child with autism, and occasional concerns about hospital staff or charting. Overall feedback emphasizes trust in his expertise and compassionate care.
Generated via Patient Reviews
4.5
/5
( out of
49 reviews
)
The patient rating score is an average of all responses on our patient experience survey. The rating averages scores for all questions about care from our providers. The scale on which responses are measured is 1 to 5 with 5 being the best score.
Patient comments are gathered from our patient experience survey and displayed in their entirety. For the convenience of our visitors, some patient comments have been translated from their original language into English while preserving their original meaning as accurately as possible. Patients are de-identified for confidentiality and patient privacy.
Board Certification and Academic Information
| Academic Departments |
Surgery
-Associate Professor |
|---|---|
| Academic Divisions |
Urology
|
| Board Certification |
American Board of Urology (Sub: Pediatric Urology)
|
Education history
| Undergraduate | German - Northwestern University | B.A. |
|---|---|---|
| Research Fellow | Cancer Research - National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute | Research Fellow |
| Professional Medical | Medicine - University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine | M.D. |
| Internship | Surgery - Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions | Intern |
| Residency | Urology - Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Brady Urological Institute | Resident |
| Chief Resident | Urology - Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Brady Urological Institute | Chief Resident |
| Graduate Training | Clinical Effectiveness - Harvard School of Public Health | M.P.H. |
| Fellowship | Pediatric Urology - Boston Children¿s Hospital | Fellow |
Selected Publications
Journal Article
- Chen J, Bautista CH, Patel A, French MM, Mienko A, Schaeffer AJ, Wallis MC, Gociman (2025). Penile Reconstruction in Aphallia: Modification of the De Castro Technique With Large Tissue Expander. Plastic and reconstructive surgery. Global open, 13(1), e6412.
- Fendereski K, Horns JJ, Driggs N, Lau G, Schaeffer A (2024). Comparing Penile Problems in Circumcised vs. Uncircumcised Boys: Insights From a Large Commercial Claims Database With a Focus on Provider Type Performing Circumcision. Journal of pediatric surgery, 59(11), 161614.
- Swallow MS, Sharadin CA, Schaeffer AJ, Jacobson DL, Lau G (2024). Anterior deflected urinary stream in female children: description of a unique clinical entity and surgical management. Frontiers in pediatrics, 12, 1434021.
- Fendereski K, Schaeffer A (2024). Bladder exstrophy-epispadias-cloacal exstrophy complex: characteristics, aetiologies, and epidemiologic findings. African urology, 4(se1), S20-S25.
- Mathews RI, Schaeffer AJ, Gearhart J (2024). Classic Bladder Exstrophy - Timing of initial closure and technical highlights. African urology, 4(se1), S11-S15.
- Hwang CK, Matta R, Woolstenhulme J, Britt AK, Schaeffer AJ, Zakaluzny SA, Kleber KT, Sheikali A, Flynn-O'Brien KT, Sandilos G, Shimonovich S, Fox N, Hess AB, Zeller KA, Koberlein GC, Levy BE, Draus JM Jr, Sacks M, Chen C, Luo-Owen X, Stephens JR, Shah M, Burks F, Moses RA, Rezaee ME, Vemulakonda VM, Halstead NV, LaCouture HM, Nabavizadeh B, Copp H, Breyer B, Schwartz I, Feia K, Pagliara T, Shi J, Neuville P, Hagedorn J (2024). Management of pediatric renal trauma: Results from the American Association for Surgery and Trauma Multi-Institutional Pediatric Acute Renal Trauma Study. The journal of trauma and acute care surgery, 96(5), 805-812.
- Siegal AR, Ferrer FA, Herndon CDA, Wallis MC, Schaeffer AJ, Malhotra N (2024). Inter-disciplinary provider development of an online, interactive adolescent varicocele decision aid prototype. Andrology, 12(2), 429-436.
- Malhotra NR, Siegal AR, Lange SM, Cervantez D, White HK, Hannon A, Schaeffer AJ, Lau G (2023). At-home use of parasacral transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation for pediatric voiding dysfunction: a randomized controlled trial to assess its safety and feasibility. Frontiers in pediatrics, 11, 1219887.
- Cull JN, Jacobson DL, Lau GA, Cartwright PC, Wallis MC, Skarda D, Swendiman R, Schaeffer A (2023). Internal hernia with volvulus after major abdominal reconstructions in pediatric urology - An infrequently reported and potentially devastating complication. Journal of pediatric urology, 19(4), 402.e1-402.e7.
- Yamashiro JR, Austin JC, Braga LH, Chuang KW, Davis-Dao CA, Hecht S, Holzman SA, Khoury AE, Kurzrock EA, Lerman SE, McGrath M, Merguerian PA, Saltzman AF, Schaeffer AJ, Seideman C, Singer JS, Wang P, Wehbi EJ, Wu HY, Sturm R (2023). Identifying variability in surgical practices and instrumentation for hypospadias repair across the Western Pediatric Urology Consortium (WPUC) network. Journal of pediatric urology, 19(3), 277-283.
- Cull JN, Jacobson DL, Schaeffer A (2023). Spontaneous and rapid transcanalicular translocation of a previously retractile testicle into the abdomen of a post-pubertal, teenage male. Urology case reports, 48, 102397.
- Matta R, Horns JJ, Jacobson DL, Schaeffer AJ, Wallis MC, Lau G (2022). National Trends and Outcomes in the Use of Intravesical Botulinum Toxin and Enterocystoplasty Among Patients With Myelomeningocele. Urology, 166, 289-296.
- Malhotra NR, Schaeffer AJ, Slade AD, Cartwright PC, Lau G (2020). Post-hypospadias urethrocutaneous fistulae: no difference in repair success between proximal and distal fistulae. The Canadian journal of urology, 27(6), 10466-10470.
- Malhotra NR, Kuhlthau KA, Rosoklija I, Migliozzi M, Nelson CP, Schaeffer A (2020). Children's experience with daytime and nighttime urinary incontinence - A qualitative exploration. Journal of pediatric urology, 16(5), 535.e1-535.e8.
- Schaeffer AJ, Cartwright PC, Lau GA, Ebert MD, Fino NF, Nkoy FL, Hess (2020). Utilization of Radiographic Imaging for Infant Hydronephrosis over the First 12 Months of Life. Advances in urology, 2020, 2108362.
- Anderson RE, Hanson HA, Lowrance WT, Redshaw J, Oottamasathien S, Schaeffer A, Johnstone E, Aston KI, Carrell DT, Cartwright P, Smith KR, Hotaling J (2017). Childhood Cancer Risk in the Siblings and Cousins of Men with Poor Semen Quality. The Journal of urology, 197(3 Pt 2), 898-905.
- McNamara ER, Schaeffer AJ, Logvinenko T, Seager C, Rosoklija I, Nelson CP, Retik AB, Diamond DA, Cendron MA (2015). Management of proximal hypospadias with 2-Stage repair: 20 year experience. The Journal of urology, 194(4), 1080-5.
- McNamara ER, Kurtz MP, Schaeffer AJ, Logvinenko T, Nelson CP (2015). Morbidity after augmentation enterocystoplasty and appendicovesicostomy: A NSQIPP analysis. Journal of pediatric urology, 11(4), 209e1-6.
- Schaeffer AJ, Johnson EK, Logvinenko T, Graham DA, Borer JG, Nelson C (2014). Practice patterns and resource utilization for infants with bladder exstrophy: a national perspective. The Journal of urology, 191(5), 1381-8.
- Schaeffer AJ, Sood S, Logvinenko T, Rivera-Castro G, Rosoklija I, Chow JS, Nelson C (2014). Variation in the documentation of findings in pediatric voiding cystourethrogram. Pediatric radiology, 44(12), 1548-56.
- Schaeffer AJ, Stec AA, Baradaran N, Gearhart JP, Mathews R (2013). Preservation of renal function in the modern staged repair of classic bladder exstrophy. Journal of pediatric urology, 9(2), 169-73.
- Massanyi EZ, Shah B, Schaeffer AJ, DiCarlo HN, Sponseller PD, Gearhart J (2013). Persistent vesicocutaneous fistula after repair of classic bladder exstrophy: a sign of failure?. Journal of pediatric urology, 9(6 Pt A), 867-71.
- Preece JP, Schaeffer AJ, Suson K (2013). Pre-sacrococcygeal teratoma as an unusual cause of neonatal bladder outlet obstruction. 24(3), 13.
- Schaeffer AJ, Yenokyan G, Alcorn K, Furth SL, Diener-West M, Wu AW, Gearhart JP, Dodson J (2012). Health related quality of life in adolescents with bladder exstrophy-epispadias as measured by the Child Health Questionnaire-Child Form 87. The Journal of urology, 188(5), 1924-9.
- Baradaran N, Stec AA, Schaeffer AJ, Gearhart JP, Mathews R (2012). Delayed primary closure of bladder exstrophy: immediate postoperative management leading to successful outcomes. Urology, 79(2), 415-9.
- Stec AA, Baradaran N, Schaeffer AJ, Gearhart JP, Matthews R (2012). The modern staged repair of classic bladder exstrophy: a detailed postoperative management strategy for primary bladder closure. Journal of pediatric urology, 8(5), 549-55.
- Ross AE, Marchionni L, Phillips TM, Miller RM, Hurley PJ, Simons BW, Salmasi AH, Schaeffer AJ, Gearhart JP, Schaeffer E (2011). Molecular effects of genistein on male urethral development. The Journal of urology, 185(5), 1894-8.
- Schaeffer AJ, Stec AA, Purves JT, Cervellione RM, Nelson CP, Gearhart J (2011). Complete primary repair of bladder exstrophy: a single institution referral experience. The Journal of urology, 186(3), 1041-6.
- Schaeffer AJ, Feng Z, Trock BJ, Mathews RI, Neu AM, Gearhart JP, Matlaga B (2011). Medical comorbidities associated with pediatric kidney stone disease. Urology, 77(1), 195-9.
- Matlaga BR, Schaeffer AJ, Novak TE, Trock B (2010). Epidemiologic insights into pediatric kidney stone disease. Urological research, 38(6), 453-7.
- Schaeffer AJ, Handa SE, Lingeman JE, Matlaga B (2008). Transsplenic percutaneous nephrolithotomy. Journal of endourology, 22(11), 2481-4.
- Schaeffer AJ, Purves JT, King JA, Sponseller PD, Jeffs RD, Gearhart J (2008). Complications of primary closure of classic bladder exstrophy. The Journal of urology, 180(4 Suppl), 1671-4; discussion 1674.
- Zorn KC, Orvieto MA, Mikhail AA, Gofrit ON, Lin S, Schaeffer AJ, Shalhav AL, Zagaja G (2007). Effect of prostate weight on operative and postoperative outcomes of robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy. Urology, 69(2), 300-5.
- Schaeffer AJ, Chung J, Heretis K, Wong A, Ledbetter DH, Lese Martin C (2004). Comparative genomic hybridization-array analysis enhances the detection of aneuploidies and submicroscopic imbalances in spontaneous miscarriages. Am J Hum Genet, 74(6), 1168-74.
- Schaeffer AJ, Nguyen M, Liem A, Lee D, Montagna C, Lambert PF, Ried T, Difilippantonio M (2004). E6 and E7 oncoproteins induce distinct patterns of chromosomal aneuploidy in skin tumors from transgenic mice. Cancer research, 64(2), 538-46.
- Qian Y, Sensibar JA, Zelner DJ, Schaeffer AJ, Finlay JA, Rittenhouse HG, Lee (1997). Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis detects prostate-specific antigen-alpha1-antichymotrypsin complex in serum but not in prostatic fluid. Clinical chemistry, 43(2), 352-9.
Review
- Schaeffer AJ, Diamond D (2014). Pediatric Urinary Incontinence: Classification, Evaluation, and Management. Afr J Urol. 20(1):1-13, 2014. African journal of urology, 20(1), 1-13.
- Schaeffer AJ, Burnett A (2012). Nonsurgical interventions for Peyronie disease: 2011 update. Journal of andrology, 33(1), 3-14.
Abstract
- Schaeffer AJ, Gearhart JP, Matlaga B (2010). Percutaneous cystolithopaxy following complex lower urinary tract reconstruction: the role of CT-guided access.
Fabulous provider! He was thorough from the start. Answered all concerns. One of the best providers we have ever had!
Mr. Schaeffer was very professional
He is brilliant, extremely knowledgeable and so thorough. He is hands down the best Pediatric Urologist!!!
Dr Schaeffer is an amazing doctor! He is extremely knowledgeable and very kind. He listens to all our concerns and does everything he can to help us. He includes me and my son in making decisions.
He was really good at making my son feel comfortable and making sure he as well as myself understood everything. Very conscious of my son and for that I'm so grateful
He is incredibly knowledgeable but also explains things in a very easy-to-understand way. He ensures that we fully understand what is happening and answers all our questions. He is realistic in his expectations and clearly communicates that.
Very positive, informational and relatable. Put our minds at ease quickly and made our son feel welcome and important.
Dr Schaeffer takes the care of his patients seriously. We have appreciated all that he has done.
He is a wonderful doctor and actually thanked us for the opportunity to care for our baby. He explained things well and took extra care to ensure we understood everything. He wanted to know if we had questions and made sure we knew how to get in touch if we did have anything come up. We always felt like we were in great hands. He was so nice interacting with my children. We would absolutely recommend him!
We credit Dr. Schaeffer with our daughter's life. He is an excellent physician but humble, which is rare to find. This combination makes him a powerful caregiver and we trust him 100% with our daughter's health. We absolutely love Dr. Schaeffer.
He is amazing Doctor and a very good surgeon
He has been so attentive and patient throughout the process. We are so grateful for him!
He's confident and well respected. He does a great job with bedside manner and explaining procedures. Your child will be in great hands with him!
Excelente profesional en su área. Gracias.
Dr. Schaeffer did a great job explaining the medical situation our son is in, including drawing very helpful pictures. We feel comfortable having him as the surgeon for our son.
So helpful and caring when it comes to answering all of my questions or concerns!
So so nice and very good at explaining things in a way you can understand and is very patient when answering questions
He is a fantastic surgeon and his follow up care for our son has been phenomenal. He has walked us through every step of the procedure and has provided above and beyond care and attention especially when complications arises. He helps us make informed decisions and guides us (but doesn't push) for the future decisions for our son.
Dr. Anthony J Schaeffer, is great and an amazing doctor. He takes the time to listen to his clients.
Dr. Schaeffer is kind and seems knowledgeable and capable but I don't think he made a connection with my child and didn't seem to understand that they have a disability (autism) and my child had a hard time communicating with Schaeffer. Schaeffer also seems a little off kilter because he was speaking very very slow and the appointment felt very long. The appointment felt a little awkward!! Otherwise he is kind and I have researched that he is very skilled in his field.
Dr. Schaeffer is an outstanding doctor. He provides excellent care to my child and help solve our problems. I also appreciate how much time he takes to discuss my child's case with me and always lets me know he is available if we need anything.
Dr. Schaeffer is the best thing that could have happened to our family. He has given exceptional care to our daughter which has resulted in exceptional results.
Dr. Schaeffer is one of the best doctors we have worked with. He took his time to make sure all of our questions and concerns were addressed. He explained things in terms we could understand and even went above and beyond in making sure our experience was the best it could be.
So clear. Very caring. Absolutely amazing.
He is a phenomenal doctor. He has taken great care for my son and makes me feel confident in his care.
Very professional, caring, explained everything
Seriously amazing. Very thorough and efficient, took the time to explain and brought a picture to help visualize and discuss the situation. Very invested in patient care and very knowledgeable.
He explains everything clearly. Answered all our questions. Was also respectful of our time. Couldn't ask for more from a doctor.
Dr Schaeffer was approachable with my son and very clear that he needed surgery. The fellow did most of the visit and the explaining and it wasnt clear the doctor would even weigh in unless we had asked. My son had a lot of anxiety about the appointment and we had discussed that the provider was male in advance, which helped him get ready for the appointment. The fellow was female, which was totally fine, but no one told us when we checked in or in the room before so we didnt have time to discuss with him.
Muy buena atencin
Best surgeon ever!!! It's easy to be over stressed when your child's health is involved, but he took that stress away; he was confident, answered all our questions, and was straight forward with us. He is more than a surgeon, he is a hero every day and should be recognized as one!
Me guta mucho como expica
Dr. Schaeffer is extremely patient and kind in helping us understand all the complicated matters concerning our case. He never makes us feel rushed or like we are a box to be checked off.
Dr. Was so great to deal with and took the best care of the situation. We had gone to several different dr and Dr Schaeffer gave the best options and cared the most about the situation
Dr. Schaeffer was extremely timely, thorough and efficient. My son's middle of the night emergency surgery went well with Dr. Schaeffer and he healed and recovered without incident. We did not waste time sitting in his office for our follow up visit, the staff was friendly and welcoming, and the facility was very clean.
Dr. Schaffer is amazing, but we have had very negative experiences with Primary Children's hospital, and for that reason only, we wouldn't recommend using him. You have to have a poor nursing staff experience at PC in order to get him, which is unfortunate because he is excellent.
Dr. Schaffer is amazing, but we have had very negative experiences with Primary Children's hospital, and for that reason only, we wouldn't recommend using him. You have to have a poor nursing staff experience at PC in order to get him, which is unfortunate because he is excellent.
After looking back at doctors notes there were many things that were charted that were not actually done. Charted incorrectly in regards to when the issues arose.
I feel we've had great service every time we've been seen in the clinic. All the staff as well as Dr Shaffer have always showed concern to all of my questions.
Dr. Mary Niu was very nice and she explained everything that needed to be done with my sons treatment.
This doctor has always had my child's best interest and has been a life line for the betterment of him and his life.
Dr. Schaeffer is an amazing provider who has dedicated so much time to my child and I. He answers questions and lets me know he is available if I need anything. Best doctor.
Dr. Schaefer relates very well to children, explains in a manner they can understand.
Dr. Shaeffer was very easy to work with. He explained the post op care and showed me how to do it for my baby. I was very happy with the service we had.
One of the best doctor's appointment ever! Friendly, informative, and he gave advice not only choices. Quite cool!
Dr. Schaefer was very thorough in explaining our sons diagnosis and treatment options and plan even over zoom. He was also very patient with the inherent technical difficulties of meeting remotely. We appreciated how thorough and responsive he was to us.
While the info delivered during the appointment was scary the Doctor made me feel like he cared very much about my Son and what he was experiencing. He made my son smile and feel as comfortable as was possible in the situation. I wish we had met Dr Shaeffer sooner.
the only thing that was never discussed was what future issues would occur if we didn't do the surgery but I was very happy with the doctor and everything else he did, he made sure it was extremely easy to contact him once we left the hospital
Dr Schaeffer actually listened and was open minded about my concerns. He was willing to look into testing procedures that he was unfamiliar with, which I very much appreciated.
Dr. Schaeffer was very thorough and reassuring and had great bedside manner.
My wife and I were very impressed with Dr. Schaeffer. We were impressed with how much time he spent discussing our daughter's condition.
We couldn't be happier with choosing Dr. Schaffer. He has been so knowledgeable about our daughter condition (even before she was even born) and has done a phenomenal work operating on her. Even during surgery we were at ease knowing she is in the BEST hands. I cannot say enough good things about this doctor and we feel lucky to have found him!