Spine care

At our spine hospital, you have access to a range of services that go beyond basic spine care. These services include:

• Advanced technology and innovative techniques to restore mobility and function
• Access to clinical trials
• Concierge experience centered on your needs
• Dedicated spine intensivists
• Dedicated intensive care unit (ICU) for spine care
• Industry-leading scoliosis treatment options and research through the Scoliosis Research Society

Treatment for back pain depends on several factors. Your doctor will consider your age, health and symptom severity.

We typically begin with diagnostic imaging to find the cause of your discomfort. This can include computerized tomography (CT) scans and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans.

Depending on your diagnosis, we may recommend physical therapy, rest, exercise and medication. You may even use physical therapy in place of surgery to treat pain. If nonsurgical options don't relieve your pain, you may need spine surgery.

Scoliosis treatment

Scoliosis is a sideways curvature of the spine. Our specialists are experienced in managing and treating scoliosis using a range of methods, including nonsurgical options. More severe situations or adult diagnoses may call for spinal surgery.

Spinal revision surgery

Sometimes following spinal surgery, you might have lingering pain. Our orthopedic providers can diagnose and treat this condition with spinal revision surgery. Using advanced technology, including robot-assisted procedures and HD-imaging systems, we can get right to the source of your pain while avoiding healthy parts of the spine.

Spondylolisthesis treatment

Spondylolisthesis, a condition in which a bone in the spine slips out of place, presses on a nerve and causes pain, is seen in teenagers and adults. We offer a range of treatments for spondylolisthesis, depending on the severity of symptoms.

We treat the most common types of spondylolisthesis, including:

• Congenital — Present at birth resulting from abnormal bone formation
• Isthmic — Condition that leads to small stress fractures in the vertebrae that weaken the bone, causing it to slip out of place
• Degenerative — Most common form caused when aging discs in the spine become less spongy and flexible

For teens, spondylolisthesis is the most common cause of back pain. Symptoms that have been present since birth often don’t appear until a growth spurt. Degenerative spondylolisthesis is most common after age 40.

An X-ray of your lower back can reveal any misplaced vertebra. In some cases, more detailed images are needed. In that case, CT scans or MRIs are used to see bones and nerves more clearly.

Treatment options depend on several factors, including age, overall health, extent of slippage in the spine and severity of symptoms. Physical therapy, including rest, exercise and medication, are often used in less severe cases.

However, if the vertebra continues to slip or pain is not relieved through non-surgical options, then surgery may be necessary to stabilize the spine. The surgical options include:

• Decompressive laminectomy — This procedure involves removing part of the bone that presses against nerves. It is known to reduce pain but can also affect the stability of the spine.
• Spinal fusion — This procedure transplants a piece of bone to the back of the spine. As the bone heals, it fuses with the spine, creating a solid mass of bone. In some cases, rods or screws are used to hold the vertebra while the fusion heals.

What is the difference between spondylolisthesis and spondylolysis?

Spondylolysis is the most common cause of isthmic spondylolisthesis. It occurs when one vertebra slips forward over another. Isthmic spondylolisthesis is a common cause of back pain in adolescents and teenagers, yet many do not experience pain or symptoms.

In addition, spondylolysis refers only to bone separations in a small arch at the back of the spine, but spondylolisthesis occurs when vertebrae slip over one another in front of the spine.

Tarlov cyst treatment

Our hospital is home to a multidisciplinary neurosurgical care team with specialized expertise in diagnosing and treating various types of symptomatic meningeal cysts, including Tarlov cysts. A Tarlov cyst compresses nerve roots in the spine, causing pain.

Tarlov cysts affect about five to nine percent of the population, according to the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS). Many will not have symptoms, while others may experience debilitating back pain and incredible dysfunction.

Tarlov cysts grow in the nerve roots of the spine and are typically located near the tailbone (sacral Tarlov cysts) but can also be found in the mid back (thoracic Tarlov cysts) or the neck (cervical Tarlov cysts).

Depending on where your cyst is located, you may experience varied symptoms, including:

• Bowel, bladder or sexual problems
• Headaches
• Onset of pain after a fall, accident or lifting a heavy object
• Pain when sitting or standing, but often not when lying down
• Pain, pressure, swelling, weakness or numbness can occur in and radiate to the neck, arm, hands, chest, back, abdomen, tailbone, buttocks, rectum, pelvic area, thighs or feet.

Because very few neurosurgeons can treat Tarlov cysts, they often go undetected for far too long. Tarlov cysts are often misdiagnosed as herniated discs and, in women, as gynecological issues.

Tarlov cysts are embedded in the nerve and should not be cut. Therefore, they require careful treatment by an expert neurosurgeon with a proven surgical technique. Recovery from a symptomatic Tarlov cyst is possible.

Symptomatic Tarlov cysts can also be managed with nonsurgical treatments, including pain management protocols and physiotherapy. Surgery is recommended only when these conservative treatments are unsuccessful.

Many patients who seek our team’s expertise report feeling that their condition is hopeless, having been through countless specialty physician visits and multiple surgeries with no relief. More than 2,500 patients have benefitted from this treatment, showing statistically significant improvements in health outcomes.

Disc replacement

Disc replacement, whether in the neck or the low back, consists of removing the disc which is the soft portion that joins the vertebral bodies at the front of the spine. Disc replacement can be an optimal solution if you have disabling pain from disc degeneration in the low back or neck.