NewYork-Presbyterian Medical Group Westchester - Primary, Specialty Care and Surgery - Eastchester

Yi Cai, MD is an Assistant Professor and Director of Sleep Surgery at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center. She is driven by the desire to improve patients’ sleep through innovative clinical and research approaches. As one of the few fellowship-trained sleep surgeons in the New York City area, Dr. Cai has expertise in the diagnosis and surgical management of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). She devotes significant attention to upper airway evaluation in personalizing treatment for her patients and offers the full spectrum of surgical sleep apnea care, ranging from nasal and pharyngeal surgery to skeletal surgery to hypoglossal nerve stimulation (Inspire therapy). Dr. Cai received her undergraduate degree with honors from Harvard College and her medical degree from Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons, where she was awarded the Coakley Memorial Prize and Donald M. Palatucci Prize. She then completed her residency in Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco. There, she led quality improvement initiatives as a chief resident, received a Patient Care Fund Award, and served as Co-Chair of the UCSF Resident and Fellow’s Council. Dr. Cai then completed fellowship training in both Sleep Medicine and Sleep Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania, where she was selected to attend the AASM Young Investigators Research Forum. Since specializing in sleep surgery, Dr. Cai has given several presentations at the premier global conferences in otolaryngology, sleep medicine, and sleep surgery. As one of <10 fellowship-trained sleep surgeons in the nation with active, peer-reviewed grant funding for sleep apnea research, Dr. Cai’s clinical expertise is uniquely strengthened by her academic experience. She is dedicated to advancing the field of sleep apnea surgery through novel therapeutic target identification and research on the cardiometabolic outcomes of OSA surgery. For this work, Dr. Cai has been supported by competitive grants from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, Triological Society, American Heart Association, and Columbia Technology Ventures, as well as awards at international conferences. Additional research interests and ongoing projects include the use of wearable technologies and applying shared decision-making to enhance care in OSA. Dr. Cai has also served on hospital and national academic committees, mentored numerous medical trainees, and reviewed articles for various research journals. She has published over 40 peer-reviewed research articles and textbook chapters, including first-author publications in JAMA Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery, SLEEP, and the leading otolaryngology textbooks.

Dr. Gittelman received his undergraduate education at the University of Pennsylvania in Bioengineering, graduating in 1979 Cum Laude and Tau Beta Pi. He attended medical school here in Westchester County at New York Medical College. His general surgical internship and residency years were served at Beth Israel Medical Center in Manhattan followed by a three year residency in Otolaryngology at the prestigious New York University Medical Center. Continuing on at NYU, Dr. Gittelman completed a fellowship in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. He remained on staff as an Assistant Professor at NYU for four years while practicing in the Faculty Practice and continuing his teaching responsibilities. During that time he developed an expertise in and taught the latest techniques in the field of Endoscopic Sinus Surgery and published multiple articles in peer reviewed medical journals. Dr. Gittelman is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, the American Academy of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the American Rhinologic Society and a founding member of the New York Facial Plastic Surgery Society.