Accepting new patients

Lara C. Atwater, M.D.

Accepting new patients

  • Associate Professor of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, School of Medicine

Specialty

  • Orthopaedics and rehabilitation

Clinical focus

  • Foot and Ankle
  • Foot and Ankle Rehabilitation
  • Foot and Ankle Sports Injuries

Locations and contact

I see patients at
Tall building with the ariel tram to its left
Center for Health & Healing, Building 1
503-494-8311
Read clinic details

About me

I am a foot and ankle surgeon who offers advanced treatment options and specialized care for a wide variety of conditions, including: 

  • Fractures
  • Arthritis
  • Sports injuries
  • Complex deformities

My clinical interests include total ankle replacement, minimally invasive surgical techniques, deformity correction, and sports injuries. I treat everything from ankle sprains and Achilles ruptures to arthritic conditions that may require ankle replacement surgery. What I love most about my work is maximizing my patients' quality of life—helping you wake up and move through your day without pain.

I take the time to ask questions and understand your goals so you can feel calm and confident about your treatment plan. 

Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my young family, hiking, spin classes, outrigger canoe paddling, exploring farmers' markets and watching water polo. 

Education and training

  • Degrees

    • B.A., 2007, Princeton University
    • M.D., 2012, Georgetown University School of Medicine

  • Residency

    • Orthopaedic Surgery, Johns Hopkins Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, 2018

  • Fellowship

    • Foot and Ankle Reconstruction, Institute for Foot and Ankle Reconstruction at Mercy Medical Center, Baltimore, MD, 2019

Memberships and associations:

  • American Board of Orthopedic Surgery, Diplomate
  • American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, Fellow
  • American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Association, Active Member
Read faculty profile

Insurance

Before scheduling an appointment

  1. Check your network. If you have health insurance,  call your company to find out if the OHSU Health location or provider you plan to visit is part of your network.
  2. Ask what you will pay. Your insurance company can tell you what your costs are likely to be.

If you schedule an appointment and your health insurance does not include OHSU Health, you may have to pay more than if you go to a provider in your insurance network. 

Visit our billing and insurance page for more information.

Ratings and reviews

Overall: 4.8 out of 5 (137 Ratings, 44 Reviews)

The patient ratings score is an average of all responses to the question "How likely would you be to recommend this provider to your family and friends (on a scale of 0 to 10)" on our nationally-recognized NRC patient surveys.

  1. My foot has been damaged biochemically by my previous immunotherapy treatments and resulting inflammation and it has been difficult for my doctors to understand (given our current insurance-imposed, flowcharting constraints) the exact degree of damage done. This has resulted in 4 surgeries.Dr. Atwater and her team are excellent and I'm also amazed that there was a left foot available with a nerve to replace mine at the last possible moment when I changed my mind about having a nerve graft. This speaks volumes for the organizational health required to pull off such a feat. Thank you very much for the new nerve. It seems to be doing well so far.

  2. I am convinced Dr Atwater is going to do the best course of treatment for my particular needs.

  3. Dr. Atwater was kind and professional. She provided evidence based advice and was great to work with!

  4. Doctor was terrific. She obviously cared, asked a lot of questions, and helped me understand things I needed to. Very nice person too.

  5. Lara had such an amazing attitude and listened to my concerns without ever being dismissive. I felt heard and well examined. And as a person with many chronic issues it's important to me to have thorough clinician notes In my chart for me to refer back to. she took amazing notes that addressed all of the things we talked about. She also walked me through the technical stuff while still making my situation feel a little less scary. I have intense fear of medical settings due to past trauma and she was just so chill which helped me so much. Thank you Lara!

  6. She listened to me. Made me feel heard and not just another patient.

  7. Dr. Lara was incredible - from initial welcome to deeply understanding my medical situation, to offering viable - and effective - options to ease my chronic pain. To now wake up and move through my day without pain has given me more reason to smile! The area of concern remains tender, although the decrease in pain has now enabled me to move freely across the stage when delivering high engaging presentations. I am forever grateful. I look forward to my check up appointment to share what her personalized care has made in my life - a POSITIVE difference!!

  8. Easy fast and they seem to be concerned with my needs and care

  9. Very friendly

  10. She was confident, knowledgeable with this specific medical issue and listened to all my concerns.

  11. Excellent doctor/surgeon who listens to my needs and concerns, with an excellent support team

  12. Highly skilled and thorough in addressing my problems. Great surgery results.

  13. We had a very good conversation. I felt like a member of the family.

  14. Very knowledgeable. Communicated well. Very informative. Good listener. Conveyed sense of calm and assurance of procedures to be applied.

  15. She was forthright, articulate, clear and answered all my questions and had a great personality, too. Great visit.

  16. Yet again, the physicians and staff at OHSU have not failed me. Two other physicians outside of the area failed to properly diagnose and treat my condition. Dr. Atwater and her associate were able to diagnose and come up with a plan of treatment within 30 minutes of my visit

  17. Dr. Atwater is kind, compassionate, listens and explains things well. She did a great job on my surgery and continues to show care and concern for my complete recovery.

  18. Everything was simple and smooth

  19. Couldn't ask for better. Everyone was thorough and made my comfort a priority.

  20. Friendly, open and honest

  21. Dr Atwater and her support staff are top notch. My surgery was successful and all post op care has been handled with sincere concern and respect for my well being

  22. She listened well and answered my questions well providing the positives and negatives of various options. And she took my goals into account. I am very happy with the results of the operation even despite the unforeseen hiccup, which she explained well.

  23. Lara Atwater was amazing and I really appreciated her.

  24. Informative friendly attentive.

  25. Thorough, professional, personable, knowledgeable

  26. Very good

  27. She's on the ball. Highly knowledgeable, gets 2 the problem right away. Very nice n personal able.

  28. Extremely informative, answered all my questions, reviewed my scans, explained my options. Rescheduled my follow up.

  29. Doctor Atwater, and the rest of the staff, was absolutely wonderful. I could not have hoped for a better experience. Everyone was incredibly kind and understanding.

  30. She's the first person that didn't write me off and tell me to just deal with whatever was hurting, she made me feel heard and seen.