Stephan Esser, MD

Sports/Spine Physician in orthopedics practice

Former Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine Fellow

Stephan Esser, MD is a non-operative sports and spine physician and a passionate proponent of exercise as medicine. He strives to maximize the function and performance of every patient he engages, whether the chronically ill, the “weekend warrior” or the elite competitive athlete. He promotes the power of personal choices and believes that “fingers, feet and forks” are some of the most powerful “medicines” we can all use. He strives to educate and empower patients with the knowledge to make informed and intentional lifestyle changes; to prevent illness, improve fitness, reduce weight, reverse chronic illness, or remediate injury.

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Dr. Esser completed his MD at the University of South Florida College of Medicine, a residency in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Harvard Medical School / Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, and a Fellowship in Sports Medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville FL. He works as a Sports and Spine Physician with Southeast Orthopedics in Ponte Vedra Beach FL, where he takes a comprehensive approach to health matters, involving nutrition, therapeutics, acupuncture and stem cell therapies. His published scientific journal articles have dealt with various sports medicine issues, Ewing’s Sarcoma, diabetes prevention and the use of exercise as medicine. He lectures widely about how plant-based nutrition, physical fitness and lifestyle medicine may help to prevent or treat conditions such as diabetes, cancer, Alzheimer’s and depression.

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Prior to his career in medicine, Dr. Esser was a competitive tennis player, achieving a ranking of #1 in the U.S. in Men’s Open Doubles (2002).