Frank A. Vicari, MD, FACS, FAAP, Pediatric Plastic & Craniofacial Surgeon

Get to know Pediatric Plastic & Craniofacial Surgeon Dr. Frank A. Vicari, who serves patients throughout the State of Illinois.

Dr. Vicari is a renowned pediatric plastic and craniofacial surgeon who evaluates, diagnoses, treats, and supports the ongoing needs of pediatric, adolescent, and young adult patients, with the overarching goal of enabling them to live normal and healthy lives. For the past 30 years, he has been caring for children with complex congenital and acquired disorders throughout the Chicagoland area, and around the world. 

During this time, he has pioneered new techniques and created new programs designed to serve children and families with difficult diagnoses. He was the first in the world to perform minimally-invasive, endoscopic-assisted craniofacial procedures for craniosynostosis. He has also pioneered mandibular distraction for airway management in children with hypoplastic (small) mandibles. 

Currently, Dr. Vicari serves as the Chief of Pediatric Plastic Surgery / Craniofacial Surgery at Advocate Children’s Hospital – Park Ridge. In addition, he has been responsible for the creation of such programs as the Congenital Hand Clinic and the Head Shape Evaluation Clinic, which is dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of children with “flat heads”. These patients have facial or cranial asymmetry from positional molding, torticollis, or synostosis.

Since 1991, he has been a Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He also holds surgical privileges with the following area hospitals: Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital, Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital, and Highland Park Hospital.

With a broad educational background, Dr. Vicari holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry and a Master of Science degree in Chemical Engineering. He worked as a Coordinator of R & D for Universal Oil Products, Inc., before attending medical school at the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. He then did residencies in general surgery and plastic surgery at Loyola University Medical Center. 

Following this, he completed fellowships in pediatric plastic surgery and craniofacial surgery at the Hospital for Sick Kids in Toronto, Ontario and then at the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital.

Thriving in his field, Dr. Vicari is board-certified through the American Board of Plastic Surgery, whose mission is to promote safe, ethical, efficacious plastic surgery to the public by maintaining high standards for the education, examination, certification, and continuous certification of plastic surgeons as specialists and subspecialists. 

Attaining fellowship status, he is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons (FACS) and a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics (FAAP). 

Pediatric plastic surgery is plastic surgery performed on children. Its procedures are most often conducted for reconstructive or cosmetic purposes. In children, this line is often blurred, as many congenital deformities impair physical function as well as aesthetics. Pediatric plastic surgeons treat children from birth through young adulthood. They choose to make pediatric care the core of their medical practice, and devote 50% or more of their time to the care of children.

Craniofacial surgery is a surgical subspecialty that deals with congenital and acquired deformities of the head, skull, face, neck, jaws, and associated structures. Craniofacial surgeons have expertise in surgery on bone, muscle, nerves, fat, and skin.

On a more personal note, Dr. Vicari’s family includes his wife, three kids, three horses, and at least two dogs (but sometimes more). He loves his horse, Justifiable, the most, but considers everyone else to be pretty cool too.

Learn More about Dr. Frank A. Vicari:

Through his findatopdoc profile, https://www.findatopdoc.com/doctor/2176164-Frank-Vicari-surgeon-pediatric-Chicago-IL-60611 through Childrens Faces, https://www.childrensfaces.com/who-we-are or through Advocate Health Care, https://care.advocatehealth.com/doctors/frank-a-vicari-park-ridge-pediatric-plastic-reconstructive-surgery 

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Karen Johnson

Karen Johnson is an Associate Content manager for FindaTopDoc and responsible for working with distinguished physicians in documenting their significant accomplishments in their field. Karen is a CPR instructor and is a member of her local theater group.