David Sobel, MD
Clinical Faculty
Research Interests
- Aerospace urology and renal stone risk reduction in astronauts
- Opioid-reduction in urologic surgery
- Laser physics for lithotripsy
Dr. David Sobel is a fellowship-trained endourologist and Assistant Clinical Professor of Urology at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts. He practices minimally invasive urologic surgery at Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine.
Dr. Sobel earned his undergraduate degree in Art: Semiotics from Brown University and his M.D. from Tufts University School of Medicine. He completed his residency in urologic surgery at the University of Vermont, followed by a fellowship in complex stone disease and minimally invasive urologic surgery at Brown University. After practicing in the Division of Urology at Brown University, he joined Maine Medical Center in 2022.
Dr. Sobel is an early-stage investigator with prior external funding, including a COBRE Pilot award (P20GM125507) and industry-sponsored grants (NCT06266793). Before pursuing a career in medicine, he worked as an industrial design researcher focused on the development of healthcare products and services. In that role, he contributed to the creation of toolkits and environments that enabled industrial design firms to envision and test innovative concepts and prototypes, such as the trauma bay and nursing home of the future.
A complete list of publications can be found on My NCBI
Smith LJ, James E, Santos E, Lukas VA, Wollin DA, Sobel DW. Integrating advanced practice providers in kidney stone prevention: patterns, barriers, and opportunities. Urolithiasis. 2026 Mar 5;54(1):61. doi: 10.1007/s00240-026-01959-6. PMID: 41784813.
Sobel DW, Caffrey P, James E, Ortiz R, Peat A, Tucci C, Pareek G. A prospective study to determine the safety and feasibility of opioid-free discharge after percutaneous nephrolithotomy. Translational Andrology and Urology 2025; 14(5):1379-1390. PMID: 40529026 doi: 10.21037/tau-2024-692. Epub 2025 May 27.
Awad MA, Sobel DW, Chew BH, Breyer BN, Plante MK, Sternberg KM. Patterns of opioid prescription post ureteroscopy among members of the Endourological Society. Transl Androl Urol. 2021 Feb;10(2):851-859. doi: 10.21037/tau-20-1121. PMID: 33718086; PMCID: PMC7947463.
Sobel DW, Gn M, O’Rourke TK Jr, Tucci C, Pareek G, Golijanin D, Elsamra S. Personal Protective Equipment for Common Urologic Procedures Before and During the United States COVID-19 Pandemic: A Single Institution Study. Urology 2020. PMID: 32380154 doi:10.1016/j.urology.2020.04.083
Sobel DW, Cisu T, Barclay T, Pham A, Callas P, Sternberg K. A Retrospective Review Demonstrating the Feasibility of Discharging Patients Without Opioids After Ureteroscopy and Ureteral Stent Placement. J Endourol. 2018 Nov;32(11):1044-1049. doi: 10.1089/end.2018.0539. Epub 2018 Oct 23. PMID: 30244594.