Founder and CEO, The Sternberg clinic of San Francisco
California Pacific Medical Center
UCSF, CPMC
San Francisco, CA, United States
Jeffrey A. Sternberg, MD, FACS, FASCRS, is an internationally recognized colorectal surgeon and a leading authority on pilonidal disease. He has refined the Pilonidal RAF (Rotation and Advancement Flap)/Cleft Lift Procedure as a definitive surgical approach for complex and recurrent pilonidal disease. Over the past 25 years, Dr. Sternberg has performed nearly 2,000 Pilonidal RAF/Cleft Lift procedures, with a recurrence rate of less than 1% in his last 1,400 consecutive cases.
Dr. Sternberg is a strong advocate for evidence-based management of pilonidal disease and has been an outspoken proponent of abandoning midline excisional techniques, which are associated with high failure and recurrence rates. His clinical focus and educational efforts emphasize off-midline closure techniques that address the anatomic driver of the disease, the deep natal cleft. His specialized practice draws patients from across the United States and internationally to The Sternberg Clinic in San Francisco.
Dr. Sternberg graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude from Dartmouth College and received his medical degree from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. He completed general surgery training at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a surgical nutrition fellowship at Harvard Medical School, and a fellowship in Colon and Rectal Surgery at the University of Minnesota. He is an Assistant Professor of Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco, and previously served as Surgical Director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center and Medical Director of the San Francisco Endoscopy Center at California Pacific Medical Center.
A Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons, Dr. Sternberg has held multiple leadership roles within ASCRS. His educational initiatives include pilonidalsurgery.com and the Sternberg Clinic YouTube Channel.
A Reliable Solution to a Frustrating Disease: Flaps and Pit-picking for Complex Pilonidal Cysts
Monday, May 11, 2026
10:21 AM - 10:28 AM ET