Shuyuan Li, MD, PhD

Clinical Biography

Shuyuan Li, MD, PhD, is an orthopedic foot and ankle surgeon in UT Health Austin’s Foot and Ankle Clinic within the Musculoskeletal Institute. She specializes in caring for adult and adolescent patients with congenital and acquired deformities, arthritis, acute and chronic trauma, sports-related injuries, as well as diabetic wounds and joint arthropathy of the foot and ankle. Additionally, Dr. Li is an assistant professor in the Dell Medical School Department of Surgery and Perioperative Care at The University of Texas at Austin.

Dr. Li earned her medical degree from Weifang Medical University in Shandong, China, and her doctorate degree in sports medicine from Peking University in Beijing, China. She completed a residency in orthopedics at Shandong Provincial Hospital at Shandong University in Shandong, China. Following her residency, she began practicing as an orthopedic foot and ankle surgeon at the top national Foot and Ankle Center, Capital Medical University, in Beijing, China. She held two post-doctoral research positions, one in sports medicine at General Hospital of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in Beijing, China and the other in orthopedic foot and ankle surgery at the University of Iowa. She completed a fellowship in orthopedic foot and ankle surgery at the University of Colorado, where she spent eight months rotating at Children’s Hospital Colorado, focusing on pediatric lower extremity deformity correction. She also completed a fellowship in orthopedic foot and ankle reconstruction at both The University of British Columbia in British Columbia, Canada and the Institute for Foot and Ankle Reconstruction at Mercy.

Dr. Li is a prolific researcher with more than 80 publications, 20 textbook chapters, and over 100 presentations at national and international meetings. She serves on the editorial boards of multiple foot and ankle medical journals. Over the past few years, she has mentored more than 50 national and international young researchers. Since 2016, she has served as the International Program Director for Steps2Walk, a global non-profit organization providing life-changing surgeries for children and adult patients with severe foot and ankle deformities in underserved communities in 22 countries. As a surgeon and educator, she traveled to multiple countries treating patients and teaching local orthopedic surgeons how to take care of foot and ankle deformities. She is passionate about delivering medical care, providing education to medical students and orthopedic residents, and using research to guide clinical practice. She is an active member of the North American Foot and Ankle Association, an academic group of 25 internationally recognized orthopedic foot and ankle surgeons, including 10 past presidents of the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society, who meet annually to discuss and debate advances in the field. She is also an active member of the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society, the International Weightbearing CT Society, and the Société Internationale de Chirurgie Orthopédique et de Traumatologie.

Please note: Dr. Li will begin seeing patients on October 13, 2025. She is currently only scheduling patients with MAP insurance or those who are self-pay.