Here are 10 spine surgeons to know:
Michele Aizenberg, MD. University of Nebraska Medical Center (Omaha). Dr. Aizenberg has special interest in primary and metastatic spine and brain tumors. She's director of the Brain and Spine Cancer Center at the Nebraska Medical Center.
Steven DeLuca, DO. Orthopedic Institute of Pennsylvania (Camp Hill). Dr. DeLuca specializes in spine surgery, along with hip surgery. Patient Preferred Physicians and Practitioners, a society of highly referred providers, has named him a "patient preferred orthopedic surgeon" for the state in 2021.
Gurvinder Deol, MD. Wake Orthopaedics (Raleigh, N.C.). Dr. Deol received his medical degree from the University of North Carolina Medical School in Chapel Hill and completed his residency at Penn State College of Medicine in Hershey. He often trains surgeons in advanced spine surgery techniques.
Jesse Even, MD. TMI Sports Medicine & Orthopedic Surgery (Arlington, Texas). Dr. Even specializes in degenerative, traumatic, sports-related and oncologic spine disorders. He's a prolific researcher and was inducted into the Cervical Spine Research Society in 2016.
Francis Farhadi, MD, PhD. Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (Columbus). Dr. Farhadi specializes in minimally invasive treatments of spine and nerve conditions. His research focuses on developing and validating markers that can predict functional recovery after spinal cord injury.
James Farmer, MD. Hospital for Special Surgery (New York City). Dr. Farmer's clinical expertise includes spondylolisthesis, skeletal dysplasia, spine regeneration and spinal deformity surgery. He has an academic appointment with Bethesda, Md.-based Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences where he trains medical students who want to care for U.S. military service members.
Brandon Hirsch, MD. The CORE Institute (Phoenix). Dr. Hirsch received his medical degree from New Haven, Conn.-based Yale School of Medicine and completed a residency at Miami-based Jackson Memorial Hospital and the University of Miami Health System. He is a member of the North American Spine Society and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.
Matt Hollenbeck, MD, Kansas Orthopaedic Center (Wichita). Dr. Hollenbeck specializes in pediatric spine surgery and scoliosis. In April, he performed Kansas' first successful vertebral body tethering procedure on a 14-year-old patient.
Mark Kerner, MD. Hampton Roads Orthopaedics Spine & Sports Medicine (Newport News, Va.). Dr. Kerner received his medical degree from New York City-based Albert Einstein College of Medicine and completed his residency at Montefiore Medical Center where he was chief resident. He specializes in minimally invasive spine surgery, motion preserving surgery and disc replacement.
Gerard Werries, MD. Tri-State Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine (North Hills, Pa.). Dr. Werries joined Tri-State Orthopaedics in 2003. He specializes in back and neck injuries.
Note: This is not an exhaustive list. Surgeons are listed in alphabetical order. To nominate a surgeon for future lists, please contact Carly Behm at cbehm@beckershealthcare.com.