About
As Director of Sleep Surgery at Columbia University Medical Center, Dr. Yi Cai is driven by the desire to improve patients' sleep through innovative clinical and research approaches. She is one of <10 fellowship-trained sleep surgeons in the nation with peer-reviewed research funding. She devotes significant attention to upper airway evaluation in personalizing patients treatments 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 routinely speaks at the premier global conferences in her field, serves on national committees, and mentors numerous medical trainees. Her peer-reviewed research articles and textbook chapters include first-author publications in JAMA Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery, SLEEP, and the leading otolaryngology textbooks.
Dr. Cai graduated from Harvard College and Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons. She completed her residency in Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Cai then completed fellowship training in both Sleep Medicine and Sleep Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to her career in medicine, Dr. Cai was an Executive Board member at the Harvard Lampoon, a healthcare consultant, and performed as a violinist both domestically and abroad.
